SA国际传谋 staff continues to add updates on testing and vaccination sites, executive orders and messages from government officials, and the latest news on COVID-19. You can find information on free food and food distributions here.
The dedicated website for the Florida Department of Health, including information about the numbers of cases, can be found .
The dedicated website from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention can be found .
To receive SA国际传谋's coronavirus updates newsletter on Wednesdays and Saturdays, sign up here.
QUICK UPDATES
Florida Adds More Than 5,200 New Cases, 145 New Resident Deaths
Updated Friday at 3:20 p.m.
confirmed an additional 5,214 positive cases of COVID-19 Friday. The state has a total of 1,967,865 confirmed positive cases, according to the state's health department.
Friday's update also included the announcement of 145 new resident deaths, increasing the statewide number of Floridians who died to 32,145. Factoring in non-resident deaths the number of deaths due to COVID-19 is 32,744.
Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties make up 10,716 of those reported deaths. Monroe County has reported 47 deaths due to COVID-19.
鈥� SA国际传谋 News
School Workers 50 And Up Can Get Vaccine At 4 Schools This Weekend
Updated Friday at 12:40 p.m.
All Palm Beach County school employees age 50 and up and those with chronic health problems will able to get at four schools over the weekend, the district announced on Friday.
Clinics will be held at Jeaga Middle School in West Palm Beach, John I. Leonard High in Greenacres, Atlantic High in Delray Beach and Lake Shore Middle in Belle Glade.
Shots will be given from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday or until all 5,000 vaccines have been administered.
鈥� By Jane Musgrave / The Palm Beach Post
Read more from our news partner at .
Publix Is Now Scheduling COVID Vaccine Appointments For People 60 And Older
Updated Friday at 12:32 p.m.
Floridians 60 and older can now schedule a COVID-19 vaccination through Publix.
Starting Friday, people 60 and older can use the Lakeland-based company鈥檚 online portal to schedule a COVID-19 vaccination for early next week. The move is in line with Gov. Ron DeSantis鈥� new executive order that will from 65 to 60 on Monday.
People who meet one of Florida鈥檚 other vaccine criteria can schedule appointments, too. That includes healthcare workers with direct patient contact, sworn law enforcement and firefighters ages 50 and older, and anyone who is considered by a physician to be 鈥渆xtremely vulnerable鈥� to COVID-19 because of a medical condition.
鈥� By Michelle Marchante / The Miami Herald
Read more from our news partner at .
Levine-Cava Has A Plan To Lower COVID-19 Age Barriers. She Urges DeSantis To Approve It
Updated Friday at 6:10 a.m
Shortly after President Joe Biden directed states to make the COVID-19 vaccine available for all by May, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine-Cava drafted a plan to begin slowly moving toward the president鈥檚 goal.
On Thursday, Levine-Cava tweeted she had sent a letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis calling on him to create a schedule to expand eligibility to all adults. In her letter, Cava detailed an 鈥渁ggressive plan鈥� on lowering the age requirement.
Earlier this week, DeSantis announced he was lowering the minimum age from 65 to 60 starting Monday. Other eligible groups include nurses, and some police officers, teachers and firefighters 50 and over.
鈥� By Devoun Cetoute / The Miami Herald
Read more from our news partner at .
Private Doctors Giving Out Thousands Of Coronavirus Vaccines In Florida
Updated Friday at 6:07 a.m
The campaign to vaccinate Floridians against COVID-19 moved to doctors鈥� offices this week, allowing patients to obtain the shots from their own medical providers rather than at pharmacies or mass vaccination sites.
The state arranged delivery this week of 85,000 doses to private medical practices, setting off thousands of phone calls to patients on waiting lists and increasing the reach of the state鈥檚 campaign to defeat the disease.
Vaccines went to a variety of providers, including large practices with multiple offices, kidney dialysis centers, medical offices that serve poor people, people with AIDS, the elderly and rural communities. Most Florida doctors still don鈥檛 have the shots, as supplies remain limited, but the number of practices receiving them is expected to increase in coming weeks now that President Biden has secured promises of increased production from the manufacturers.
鈥� By David Fleshler and Cindy Krischer Goodman / The South Florida Sun Sentinel
Read more from our news partner at .