Florida Posts Record Number Of New Coronavirus Cases: CDC

FLORIDA — After enjoying two months of a return to normalcy, it's the news Floridians were dreading.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention coronavirus tracker, Florida reported 21,683 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, the state’s highest one-day total since the pandemic began, making Florida the nation's top state for the number of new coronavirus cases.

Florida now accounts for a fifth of all new cases in the United States, with a majority of the illnesses caused by the delta variant of the virus.

The report comes a day after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive order that would prevent school districts from making the wearing of face masks mandatory for students.

DeSantis has also vowed to block any federal legislation mandating face masks, ordering business closures or requiring residents to be vaccinated.

The rise in coronavirus cases from Friday's 17,093 to Saturday's 21,683 wasn't reported on the Florida Department of Health's coronavirus website. In early June, the DOH stopped reporting daily statistics and has said it has no intention of resuming daily reporting.

The news prompted Florida's only Democratic elected officials, Commissioner of Agriculture Nikki Fried, to launch her own effort to keep Floridians informed by providing a daily coronavirus update on her social media sites.

Florida's rising coronavirus rate has also spurred Disney World and its affiliate theme parks in Orlando and Universal Orlando Resort to resume requiring guests and employees to wear masks.

Disney World is also requiring all salaried and non-union employees to be fully vaccinated.

Busch Gardens and SeaWorld are recommending but not requiring that guests wear masks.

On Thursday, President Joe Biden announced that he is requiring all federal employees to provide proof of vaccination and appealed to others around the country to get vaccinated.

"This is an American tragedy. People are dying — and will die — who don't have to die. If you're out there unvaccinated, you don't have to die," Biden said. "Read the news. You'll see stories of unvaccinated patients in hospitals, as they're lying in bed dying from COVID-19, they're asking, 'Doc, can I get the vaccine?' The doctors have to say, 'Sorry, it's too late.'"

Prior to Saturday, the highest number of coronavirus cases in Florida was 19,334 cases on Jan. 7.

The CDC also reported that 409 Floridians died due to the coronavirus this week.

See related stories:

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• Many Patch Readers Concerned About FL's COVID Surge: Survey
• If Governor Won't Release COVID-19 Reports, Nikki Fried Will
• Face Masks Required Again For All Walt Disney World Guests