Fourth coronavirus case found in Florida

by | Mar 5, 2020


The new coronavirus case was confirmed on Thursday by Governor Ron DeSantis, with a man over the age of 70 from Santa Rosa County being the fourth confirmed case in the state.

In a press conference today, DeSantis, along with First Lady Casey DeSantis, made the announcement at the Gadsden County Sheriff’s Office in Quincy.

The new case, an elderly man who reportedly traveled internationally, had traveled internationally and  has “severe underlying conditions” that prevents him from answering any questions regarding his trip. Like other cases in the state, the man tested “presumptive positive,” but has not been confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“He had been doing international travel,” DeSantis said. ““He’s not in shape to fully answer all the questions, so there is an investigation ongoing,”

While the Santa Rosa County man has not been officially confirmed by the CDC, DeSantis stated that health officials are “highly confident” that his case will be verified by the CDC.

DeSantis went on to say that elderly people are the most at-risk for COVID-19.

“If you look at the data that’s coming out… for people who are elderly or frail and people of underlying medical conditions, that is overwhelmingly the groups that are most susceptible to COVID-19,” DeSantis told reporters.

The new outbreak follows an executive order issued by DeSantis on Sunday after two individuals tested positive for the coronavirus.To date, Florida has identified only three other cases of coronavirus. Only one of those cases didn’t involve travel overseas.

Despite the new case in the Sunshine State, the governor doubled-down, stating that the risk remains low for Floridians.

“The risk to Florida remains low,” DeSantis said when asked about the severity of the virus. “People should just take proper precautions.”

Testing for the virus in currently ongoing in Miami, Tampa and Jacksonville.

 

 

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