Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on July 16
We’re keeping track of the latest news regarding the coronavirus in South Florida and around the state. Check back for updates throughout the day.
DeSantis, Rubio disagree on Florida’s supply of COVID drug remdesivir
5 p.m.: Remdesivir, the antiviral that has shown promise as a coronavirus treatment, is in high demand in Florida these days.
Gov. Ron DeSantis has — for weeks — touted the drug and the state’s efforts to acquire it, saying the treatment has led to better outcomes for those who’ve been hospitalized by the virus.
But on Thursday, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, like DeSantis a Republican, sounded an alarm about what he said was the insufficient supply of the drug in state hospitals.
Read the full story here.
CDC bans cruises in U.S. waters until October citing ongoing COVID-19 crisis
4:45 p.m.: Cruising is banned in U.S. waters until at least Oct. 1, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Thursday.
The health agency extended its no-sail order for cruises, previously in place through July 24, for the second time during the COVID-19 pandemic amid continued disease outbreaks on cruise ships. The extension comes as the number of COVID-19 infections on land in the U.S. is surging.
The latest setback for the industry did not come as a surprise, as dozens of states are experiencing spikes in COVID-19 cases, including Florida, home of PortMiami — the world’s busiest cruise port — and headquarter offices for all of the major cruise companies.
Read the full story here.
Publix requiring customers to wear masks at all stores
4:20 p.m.: Starting Tuesday, Publix requires that all of its customers across its chain of grocery stores wear a face covering while shopping due to the continued spread of the novel coronavirus.
This might seem redundant in Miami-Dade, Broward and Florida Keys’ Publix stores since this rule has been in effect for months. But it wasn’t chain wide.
“With the number of coronavirus cases continuing to grow and current CDC guidance indicating face coverings can help slow the spread of COVID-19, we believe requiring face coverings in our stores is another way we can do our part to help protect our communities,” said Publix Director of Communications Maria Brous.
Read the full story here.
Keys to restrict alcohol sales as COVID-19 numbers rise. Defying county mask law is now a crime
2:35 p.m.: All restaurants and bars in the Florida Keys must close at 11 p.m. and not reopen until 5 a.m. the next day from July 24 to Aug. 19. Alcohol sale are also banned from between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. during those dates, due to COVID-19.
“All the steps that we’re doing, we’re taking so we can limit the transmission of the virus,” said County Mayor Heather Carruthers. “We’re hearing this tends to be at bars and restaurants where people let their guard down.”
At the same time, Monroe County made its mandatory mask law a criminal offense if violated, punishable by a $500 fine and possible jail time.
The new rules came as the Keys have seen a continuous dramatic rise in reported confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus.
Read the full story here.
Will Miami have to lock down again? Mayor, business owners to talk as COVID surges
2:25 p.m.: Miami Mayor Francis Suarez on Thursday announced he plans to meet with about 25 business leaders to discuss “the possibility of a future lockdown” if the spread of COVID-19 is not dramatically reduced in the next few weeks.
The mayor signaled that a lockdown could be seriously considered if in the next few weeks the surge of positive cases and hospitalizations is not tamped down, and especially if hospitals become further strained from the influx of patients. In the last seven days, Miami-Dade County has added 19,464 new COVID-19 positive tests to its tally, 26% of all confirmed cases since March.
Suarez echoed other local elected officials, including Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez, in saying that while they don’t want to shutter businesses again, every option will be considered if the situation does not improve.
Read the full story here.
Several Miami Hurricanes test positive for COVID-19. Football workouts canceled Thursday
12:35 a.m.: The coronavirus has made its way into the University of Miami football program.
The Miami Herald has learned that at least three players have tested positive for COVID-19, prompting the Hurricanes to cancel their mandatory workouts on Thursday.
“Out of an abundance of caution and in coordination with our return to campus policy, we elected to postpone today’s workout,” UM told the Herald.
Read the full story here.
The Miami Dolphins announced changes to their 2020 season because of COVID-19
11:55 a.m.: As the COVID-19 crisis continues to hammer South Florida, the Miami Dolphins announced Thursday that they are barring fans from attending training camp practices and preseason games.
However, the club is still holding out hope that some fans can enter Hard Rock Stadium for the regular season, which begins Sept. 20.
Read the full story here.
Florida sees another coronavirus fatality record of 156 as nearly 14,000 new cases added
11:25 a.m.: Florida’s Department of Health on Thursday confirmed 13,965 new cases of COVID-19, the second highest single-day total recorded in the state since the pandemic began in March. The state now has a total of 315,775 confirmed cases.
There were also 156 new Florida resident deaths announced, bringing the statewide resident death toll to 4,677.
Read the full story here.
Republican National Committee scales back Trump’s Jacksonville convention, moves events outdoors amid coronavirus
9:50 a.m.: With coronavirus cases in Florida surging, the Republican National Committee announced Thursday morning that it would limit attendance at the Jacksonville convention next month.
President Trump will accept the GOP nomination on Aug. 27 in front of a smaller crowd than the 15,000 that VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena can hold, a letter to delegates indicated.
RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, in the letter to convention delegates, announced that only delegates would be allowed inside the convention venue for the first three days of the event while delegates plus a single guest and alternate delegates would be able to attend the president’s speech.
Read the full story here.
Florida sees new surge of weekly unemployment claims as coronavirus rages
9:20 a.m.: After weeks of steady declines, Florida saw a new surge in first-time filings for unemployment benefits as coronavirus cases hit record numbers throughout the state.
The U.S. Department of Labor reported Thursday 129,408 new unemployment filings in the Sunshine State for the week ended July 11 — an increase of 62,467 from the previous week.
The number of people remaining on unemployment surged, too.
Read the full story here.
‘They don’t know what they’re doing.’ Miami’s public hospital misses out in CARES Act
8:30 a.m.: Jackson Health System and Broward Health, Miami-Dade and Broward’s public hospitals, missed out on a chunk of federal funding because of the formula the U.S. Health and Human Services used to dole out money.
But as more patients with COVID-19 cross county lines for available beds and the region’s taxpayer-supported hospitals struggle to keep up with South Florida’s exponential growth in cases, some medical centers have been shut out of hundreds of millions of dollars in federal CARES Act funds intended to help those that are hardest hit.
U.S. Rep. Donna Shalala, a Miami Democrat and former U.S. Health and Human Services secretary, blames her former agency, saying: “They don’t know what they’re doing.”
Read the full story here.
CATCH UP TO START THE DAY
8:20 a.m.: Here are the coronavirus headlines to catch you up on what’s happening around South Florida and the state as Thursday begins.
▪ Homeless outreach workers in quarantine after COVID-19 exposure, straining service.
▪ COVID test results taking too long, DeSantis says, so slow labs will get less work.
▪ Florida coronavirus cases hit 301,810 as state reports more than 10,000 cases
This story was originally published July 16, 2020 at 9:11 AM with the headline "Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on July 16."
