Coronavirus in Florida – March 31st update
Bottom Line: We’ve had 637 new cases and 11 deaths in Florida over the past 24 hours. That’s the bad news. The better news is that despite the increases, Florida remains just 6th in the country in total cases and we’re the third most populous state. Additionally the new case count is lower than the three prior days. We’re performing better than most states on a relative basis.
Monday brought about a series of new executive orders by Governor DeSantis. These included a “Safer At Home” order for Broward, Miami-Dade, Monroe and Palm Beach counties through at least mid-April. The governor also provided a timeline that potentially will extend current emergency measures in place through mid-May. This after scientific modeling suggests the virus may peak in early May. Another order allows retired state law enforcement and health care professionals to return to work to meet the state’s needs during the coronavirus crisis. DeSantis also was able to secure recently FDA approved medicine to treat COVID-19 from Israeli provider Teva pharmaceuticals.
The range in age for positive tests in our state ranges from six months to 96. More than half of all of Florida’s cases currently are in the tri-county area with Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach having the most cases in the state in that order. Here’s the count in South Florida right now...
- Broward: 1,137
- Miami-Dade: 1,701
- Palm Beach:463
We continue to see a high rate of positive test results in Florida. To date nearly 10% of all tests for COVID-19 have come back positive. That’s up from last week – perhaps indicating that community spread has been occurring. Florida’s positive test rate remains much higher than the guidance provided by the Coronavirus Task Force of 1%-4% worldwide.
The further we get into testing and this process, it’s unlikely we’re just documenting people who already had it and are just being documented. The highest concentration of cases is coming from those between the ages of 45-54. Followed by those who are 55-64.