Florida New Coronavirus Cases More Than 10,000, Florida Representative Calls for Closure of State

By Mary Anne R. Jul 20 2020, 00:26 AM EDT

Florida coronavirus cases — Getty Images Joe Raedle Getty Images Joe Raedle

Florida's new coronavirus cases have hit 12, 523 on Saturday, which makes it the fifth consecutive day the state has reported more than 10,000 cases, says the state's health department.

Data also show that Florida has reported more than 11,865 cases of the coronavirus on average for the past seven days, which is an increase of 28.85 percent.

Since July 14 the state has reported more than 10,000 new cases of coronavirus. The Florida health department has recorded a surge of new cases at 15, 244 on July 11.

Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration also said that hospitalizations have increased. Around 49 more hospitals had no more available adult intensive care units, as of Sunday.

Florida state Rep. Donna Shalala said that the residents are terrified.

Shalala said she was also terrified for the first time in her career "because there's a lack of leadership."

The state representative also said that they have community spread, meaning the virus is out of control."

Shalala said that there is a lack of both federal and state leadership from Governor Ron DeSantis. She said that Florida did not shut down for long, adding that DeSantis has declined to issue a statewide mask order.

"In my district, it's low-income minorities: Hispanics and African-Americans, who are forced to go back to work for economic reasons and because their employers demanded they go back to work," Shalala was quoted in a report.

The Florida representative also said that people in her district live in multi-generational households. Those who are infected can pass it on to their older family members.

Shalala said that they need to close down Florida. She said the economy will not be fully recovered until the pandemic is addressed head down.

Young People Infected

The state's health department said that over the past seven days, newly infected people in Florida are mostly above 40.

The observation has a steady rise since mid-June when DeSantis said that the median age of those testing positive had decreased to 37 years old from 65.5 years old.

DeSantis said that this is proof that the state has been effectively protecting older people as these are the most vulnerable residents.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's data said that younger people are less likely to have severe symptoms and die from the coronavirus disease.

"There is more testing now than there was then so that may account for some of this but I think we're seeing a true increase in cases in older adults," Epidemiologist at the University of Florida Cindy Prins was quoted in a report.

Prins said this makes sense with the overall increase in cases.

U.S President Donald Trump has defended his handling of the pandemic in an interview broadcast on Sunday.

Trump said Florida will be under control. He said that it will be eventually right and disappear.