Florida Mayor Calls Out Gov. DeSantis For Being MIA During Omicron Surge

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ORLANDO (CBSMiami/AP) — As Florida goes done the latest question of COVID-19, the politician of 1 of the state’s largest counties has called retired Gov. Ron DeSantis, saying helium has been missing successful enactment arsenic immoderate municipalities person brought backmost disguise mandates and opened up caller investigating sites successful effect to overwhelming demand.

Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said section governments person been forced to fig retired connected their own, without assistance from the state, however to respond to the omicron variant that has rapidly overtaken the delta variant arsenic the ascendant strain of the coronavirus successful Florida.

Florida deed a caller grounds for regular cases past weekend, with the authorities reporting 32,850 caller cases connected Saturday. The authorities reported much than 29,000 caller cases connected Tuesday.

Demings said caller restrictions placed by DeSantis and the Florida Legislature connected actions that tin beryllium taken by section governments and backstage businesses to combat the microorganism person made warring the pandemic much difficult. A caller instrumentality signed by DeSantis past period prevents businesses from having vaccine mandates unless they let workers to opt out. It besides bars schools and governments from having vaccine mandates and allows parents to writer schools with masking requirements.

Demings said Tuesday that each Orange County workers would beryllium required to deterioration look masks portion connected the job. He added that the authorities should assistance ft the measure for the investigating that is being conducted astatine region sites.

“Our residents, each Florida residents, should beryllium outraged and they should inquire the question, ‘Where is our state? Where is our governor? Where is Ron DeSantis now?’ When is the past clip you saw the politician bash a property briefing connected COVID-19?” said Demings, a Democrat.

The governor’s bureau did not instantly respond to an emailed petition for comment. DeSantis, who is moving for reelection and eyeing a imaginable 2024 statesmanlike run, has go 1 of the nation’s astir salient Republicans done his absorption to lockdowns and different microorganism rules.

All implicit the state, investigating sites person been overwhelmed with radical waiting for hours to get a test. One investigating tract successful Orange County had a five-hour wait.

Dr. Raul Pino, manager of the Florida Department of Health successful Orange County, said adjacent if the region could unfastened 5 much investigating sites, they would inactive beryllium overwhelmed. If idiosyncratic believes they person been exposed to the virus, they should presume they are affirmative and isolate themselves, helium said.

“A batch of radical are wanting to get tested,” Pino said.

In Palm Beach County, radical were waiting for 4 hours to get a COVID-19 trial astatine Gaines Park, the West Palm Beach Police Department said successful a tweet. At different tract successful Palm Beach County, dozens of radical were successful enactment earlier the investigating tract opened.

Officials successful Miami-Dade County opened 2 caller coronavirus investigating sites and extended hours for investigating astatine Zoo Miami successful effect to accrued demand. The Zoo Miami tract is unfastened for investigating 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

“We are moving astir the timepiece to marque definite Miami-Dade residents person entree to investigating to support themselves and their loved ones during the vacation season,” Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said successful a quality merchandise connected Tuesday.

She said the region has besides distributed 152,000 take-home accelerated trial kits. Levine Cava added that masks indispensable beryllium worn wrong each region facilities.

Jackson Health System successful Miami said it would nary longer connection COVID tests to patients without symptoms.

In the authorities capital, Tallahassee Memorial Hospital said successful a tweet that it had been inundated with patients with lone mild oregon nary symptoms seeking COVID tests, putting a strain connected exigency rooms and delaying attraction for those with genuine emergencies. Hospital officials urged radical with mild oregon nary symptoms to get tests elsewhere and debar the exigency rooms.

Officials successful Hillsborough County, which is location to Tampa, besides said that look coverings would beryllium required successful each indoor region facilities for workers and visitors careless of a person’s vaccination presumption starting Wednesday.

“The measurement is being taken arsenic a precaution for the wellness and information of region employees arsenic good arsenic residents,” Hillsborough County said successful a statement.

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