The Florida Department of Health reported 15,299 new cases of COVID-19 from Saturday (July 11), shattering the previous one-day record and accounting for around a quarter of all of the United States’ daily infections.
Florida lifted coronavirus restrictions in May, and Disney World reopened its theme parks on Saturday, leaving many concerned about the possible rise of cases in the coming weeks. This comes amid reports that more than 40 hospitals in Florida say their intensive care facilities are at full capacity. A Reuters analysis also pointed out that Florida would rank fourth in the world for new cases if it were a country. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, recently addressed the rising cases in Florida, which he believes is a result of easing restrictions too early.
He stated on FiveThirtyEight’s weekly PODCAST-19, “Despite the guidelines and the recommendations to open up carefully and prudently, some states skipped over those and just opened up too quickly. Certainly Florida I know, you know, I think jumped over a couple of checkpoints.”