Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
DeSantis: Expect more virus cases
Governor urges residents to protect themselves
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed Monday that two Florida residents had contracted the disease caused by coronavirus.
The confirmation came as state leaders moved to bolster defenses against COVID-19, the name of the illness caused by the virus, after it was detected over the weekend in two Florida residents.
“We do anticipate to see more positive cases in Florida and we have taken additional actions to help contain the viruses spread,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a Monday
news conference in Miami. “We don’t know everything about the virus yet, but if you are younger and healthy, people tend to weather that. If you have underlying health conditions or are elderly, those are the two groups where the virus has had an impact. “
DeSantis and state Surgeon General Dr. Scott Rivkees announced several
steps to contain the disease, including expanded testing at hospitals, protective measures for health workers, and self-isolation for anyone returning from high-risk countries. State health workers also are tracking and attempting to isolate anyone who had contact with the two people who contracted the illness.
Florida’s first two cases of coronavirus were announced Sunday, prompting DeSantis to declare a public health emergency. He said Monday that he expected more cases to be detected but that the overall risk remained “low.”
So far 23 people in Florida have been tested and 184 are being monitored. Eight test results are pending.
One of the confirmed cases involves a Manatee County man in his 60s who is hospitalized, Rivkees said. It’s not known how he contracted the virus, and he had been hospitalized for five days before being tested. The other case involves a woman in her 20s in Hillsborough County who recently returned from a trip to northern Italy, one of the high-risk regions. She is isolated at home and is in stable condition.
Here are the major steps announced Monday:
■ Anyone returning from high-risk regions, such as China, Iran, Japan, northern Italy and South Korea, is asked to selfisolate for 14 days. If they develop symptoms such as fever, a cough or shortness of breath, they are asked to first contact the state health department or county health department before going to the doctor or hospital.
■ Hospitals are asked to expand testing for coronavirus to patients with lower respiratory tract problems that may not have a known cause, such as a visit to a high-risk country. Hospital workers should take protective measures in such cases.
■ Nursing homes and similar facilities were asked to review visitor policies to protect residents, since the illness is most dangerous for those who are elderly or have existing health problems.
■ Colleges and universities were asked to assist students returning from high-risk regions with the 14-day self-isolation.
“Because of the foregoing conditions [with the two confirmed Florida cases], I direct the State Health Officer and Surgeon General, Dr. Scott Rivkees, to declare a public health emergency in the State of Florida,” DeSantis’ order said. “The State Health Officer is authorized and directed to use his judgment as to the duration of this public health emergency.”
DeSantis said he is looking to waive requirements for out-of-state healthcare workers in order for them to practice in Florida should state workers become exposed and need to be isolated. “They may be able to come in from areas that weren’t as affected,” DeSantis said.
The governor also said Florida is now able to test for COVID-19 at its three Department of Health labs in Florida in Miami, Jacksonville and Tampa. The local test kits allow for 24- to 48-hour results instead of the three to five days it had been taking to get results from the CDC lab in Atlanta.
“We think it’s prudent to be working to get ahead of this; at the same time it’s important to say the risk to the public remains low,” DeSantis said. “The vast majority of people who acquire this are not going to need hospitalization.”
The governor said that the state is working to get the tests to hospitals and doctors’ offices in Florida. The CDC has 15,000 kits but that will take time to get out, DeSantis said.
According to Shamarai Roberson, Florida’s Deputy Secretary for Health, if someone is tested, and a “presumptive positive” is returned, those individuals will be isolated. If somebody is in the hospital with a respiratory illness and does not have another diagnosis like flu, then they are eligible for testing. Roberson asked people with symptoms to call their local health department before arriving at a hospital to be tested.
The COVID-19 tests sent to public laboratories do not have a cost, Roberson said.
“We are mindful that 80% of people who acquire COVID-19 are not going to be hospitalized,” DeSantis said. “We are not recommending anyone who is coughing just show up in the emergency room. That’s not the most effective way to limit the spread of this.”
Hotline: The Florida Department of Health has set up a call center for questions about COVID-19. The center can be reached at 1-866-779-6121 or emailing COVID-19@flhealth.gov. The call center is available Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm.
The department has also set up a COVID-19 webpage at www.FloridaHealth.gov/COVID-19.
Palm Beach County schools: In a letter to parents and teachers Monday morning, the Palm Beach County School District assured parents and teachers that schools in the county were “functioning as normal.” According to the letter, the school district will implement “enhanced” cleanings of all campuses and kitchens for the next 30 days. The enhanced cleanings will be reevaluated and continued if it seems necessary.
“The District is taking this health threat very seriously, continuing to monitor schools for potential cases,” the letter said.
A spokeswoman for the Palm Beach County School District said enhanced cleaning means using a district-approved disinfectant every day on surfaces such as desktops, tabletops, door knobs, building entrances, restrooms and water fountains.
Broward County schools: Superintendent Robert Runcie said that Broward Public Schools will address the virus spread in multiple phases. Right now he said the focusing on awareness and prevention and schools have been actively sending information to parents and teachers, as well as making sure they have plenty of soap, sanitizer and other supplies available.
He said the school has a pandemic plan that has gone into effect with similar viruses such as the H1N1 virus. Among the options at their disposal are packets of lessons that students from grades K-12 can work on at home if they need to miss school for an extended period of time. He said there are also a number of digital resources including textbooks that are available online and a virtual university that is already used daily by over 9,000 students and can be expanded to include more. “We could ratchet that up as necessary,” he said.
He said that depending on where the infections go, there are plans to close down individual schools or an entire district if need be. “What we do is going to depend on the severity of the impact,” he said.
He said their decisions will also be informed by guidance from the Broward Department of Health and the Center for Disease Control. “We’re just going to continue to monitor the situation like everyone else,” he said.
Miami-Dade County schools: In a news conference last week, Miami-Dade Public Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said the school system has its own pandemic plan and that they have also began an awareness campaign with schools and parents.
Carvalho said there are other measures schools are taking including installing hand sanitizers in school buses and placing sanitizers in entrances to schools, cafeterias, gyms and other places where large amounts of students congregate. All school trips out of the country will be put on hold until the spread of the virus is under control.
Carvalho said that if the virus encroaches upon Miami-Dade, individual schools are also ready to shut down and use virtual schooling if necessary.
Daisy Gonzalez-Diego, a spokeswoman for Miami-Dade Public Schools said virtual schooling would only be resorted to, “if and when a case has been identified that is associated with our schools.” She also added that not all schools in the system would be shut down, only the affected schools or perhaps even portions of it.
“This would be a measure that would be done in close coordination with health officials,” Gonzalez-Diego said.
Spring break: DeSantis said spring break, and the arrival of students from abroad, is a concern. Restricting travel into the country has been helpful in containing the spread of the virus, as is stronger screening from Italy. The state of Florida has 125 million visitors that come to Florida each year.
“Spring break is a concern,” DeSantis said. “We’ve been in contact with all the universities. People go abroad and they are now coming back. If you are coming back for spring break from a place in Italy that’s had an outbreak, stay at home, follow the guidance of the CDC.”
City of Fort Lauderdale: Chaz Adams, a spokesman for the city of Fort Lauderdale, said the emergency management division has been in close communication with state health officials to get the latest developments related to COVID-19. He said right now the overall immediate threat to the public remains low.
He declined to comment on whether the city was taking any precautions when it comes to the thousands of spring breakers from all around the country who will be arriving to spend time in Fort Lauderdale this month.
Broward County: The county has begun cleaning and disinfecting all county buses, as well as Port Everglades, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and other county facilities. In its cleaning, the county is focusing on escalator handrails, elevator buttons and other surfaces that people are likely to touch, according to a county press release.
Florida theme parks: Disney has closed its three Asia parks in Japan, China and Hong Kong because of concerns about the outbreak. At Disney World in Orlando, the company has not responded to Orlando Sentinel inquiries about whether the theme park is taking new precautions.
Meanwhile at SeaWorld, spokeswoman Lori Cherry reiterated an earlier message that the park is listening to the state and federal health officials on what steps to take.
“We employ rigorous sanitation standards across our parks and will continue to collaborate with health officials, monitor the situation for changes and will act accordingly,” Cherry said in a statement, adding that no employees have been sent home.
Last week, Disney confirmed a small number of third-party Epcot workers were asked to stay home after they returned from a trip to Italy in an abundance of caution.
Religious institutions: According to a news release on Monday, the Archdiocese of Miami has suggested its parishes temporarily discontinue specific practices that involve contact with both the mouth and hands in the distribution of communion. Also, it recommends no hand-holding during certain prayers and exchanges of greetings either at the beginning or end of a mass or during the prayer known as the Sign of Peace. The holy water fonts at church doors may be emptied, and parishioners who are feeling unwell or have flu-like symptoms are encouraged to stay home and not attend services.