With the much more contagious delta variant now spreading exponentially, Florida had 11,515 hospitalized patients Tuesday, breaking last year's record for the third straight day. Hospitalizations have increased 11 times over the 1,000 COVID patients hospitalized in mid-June. About 2,400 patients are now in intensive care.
A year ago, Florida was averaging about 180 COVID-19 deaths per day during an early August spike, but last week averaged 58 per day. Deaths don't spike until a few weeks after hospitalizations as the disease usually takes weeks to kill.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis doubled down Tuesday as the state again broke its record for COVID-19 hospitalizations, insisting that the spike will soon abate and that he will not impose any business restrictions or mask mandates.
Broward County's school board voted last week to require facial coverings when in-person learning resumes this month, enforcing the latest recommendations of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But the board reversed itself after DeSantis signed an executive order preventing mask mandates in schools, and empowering the state to deny funding to any districts that don't comply.
Broward's board had responded to the latest science on the virus, which suggests the vaccinated can still spread infection. This revelation prompted the CDC to recommend "universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students, and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status."