Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Local: Governor warns Florida hospitals to step up COVID-19 vaccinations or see doses cut.
Gov. Ron DeSantis warned hospitals Monday that if they don’t step up their coronavirus vaccinations, their doses will start to be cut.
At a news conference at the Orlando Health South Seminole Hospital in Longwood on Monday, DeSantis cited the hospital system’s expansion of the vaccine program as an example of what he wants other hospitals to do across the state.
“If they’re exceeding their targets ... and there are other hospitals that are not moving the vaccine, then we’re going to up their allotment,” DeSantis said. “And we’re going to reduce the allotment of any hospital systems that aren’t getting the shots in the arms.”
DeSantis did not elaborate on which hospitals he thinks are lagging.
DeSantis also said he wants Florida to convert some COVID19 testing sites into vaccination sites, hire 1,000 more nurses, identify churches and other places of worship where people can get the shots, and investigate the most productive way to offer vaccinations at long-term care facilities.
The governor said he couldn’t yet give a specific timeline on how much of the vaccine will be available. He said the state only knows the week before about precise amounts of shipments.
“We’ve gotten it when we’ve gotten it,” DeSantis said. “It hasn’t been perfect. But man, this is a big logistical operation.”
Teachers won’t be added to the list just yet for vaccine eligibility because people 65 or older need it more, DeSantis said. But the work
force, in general, is the next target, he said, a goal that will become more feasible when the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine is approved and comes online, which was estimated to happen sometime this month or next.
“You literally could drop a bunch of vaccines at Disney, Orange County Schools, wherever,” DeSantis said. “And they can knock that out pretty quickly. And it’s one dose and done. So I think that makes more sense with essential workers.”
On a broader level, particularly for state-run facilities, the governor says he wants vaccination sites to be open seven days a week.
The governor said people don’t have to be Florida residents to get the vaccine in the state if they’re otherwise eligible.
The first pilot program for distribution at places of worship was at a church in Escambia County in the Panhandle, DeSantis said.
“And it was a great success,” he said. “We were able to vaccinate over 500 seniors, and also have them scheduled for their booster shot, which they will then receive at the same location when that time comes. So you’re going to see this approach all over the state.”