Governor confirms two ‘presumptive positive’ cases of coronavirus in Florida
A Manatee County resident and a Hillsborough County resident have tested “presumptively positive” for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, according to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office. These are the first two cases to be reported in Florida.
A presumptive positive case has tested positive by a public health laboratory and is pending confirmatory testing at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The announcement was included in a memorandum released late Sunday declaring a public health emergency in the state.
The declaration directs Surgeon General Scott Rivkees to follow the guidelines established by the CDC in establishing protocols to control the spread of COVID-19 and educate the public on prevention, the memo states.
The Florida Department of Health said the Manatee resident is a man in his 60s ”without travel history to countries identified for restricted travel by the CDC. This person did seek health care, is isolated and will continue to remain isolated until cleared by public health officials. The Florida Department of Health is working closely with the patient, their close contacts and health care providers to isolate and monitor persons who may have been exposed to COVID-19 and implement testing of anyone who may develop COVID-19 symptoms, including fever, cough, or shortness of breath.”
The man was reported to be in stable condition, according to state officials.
The Hillsborough resident has a history of travel to Italy and is being monitored, according to the health department.
The Florida Department of Health updated its covid-19 website on Sunday, listing the two presumptive positives, eight cases pending testing results, and 184 people under monitoring.
“Despite these cases in Florida, the overall immediate threat to the public remains low,” the department said in a news release.
The governor’s office announced late Sunday that DeSantis and other state officials would be holding a news conference Monday morning in Tampa and Monday afternoon in Miami.
The news comes two days after federal officials expanded testing criteria and Florida became capable of processing tests within the state.
On Saturday, all three Florida Department of Health labs — in Miami, Tampa and Jacksonville — became capable of testing for novel coronavirus, cutting the wait times for results to within 24 to 28 hours. For weeks, the tests were being sent to a federal lab in Atlanta, which was producing results within three to five days.
On Friday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also expanded its criteria for who should be tested. Physicians should now determine whether any patient with severe pneumonia symptoms should be tested, regardless of their travel history, the agency advised.
Sunday saw a series of new confirmations of the virus. Rhode Island and New York confirmed their first cases, and additional patients were identified in Washington and California, where two health care workers tested positive for the virus.
Miami Herald staff writers Ben Conarck and Bianca Padro Ocasio contributed to this report.
This story was originally published March 1, 2020 at 10:17 PM with the headline "Governor confirms two ‘presumptive positive’ cases of coronavirus in Florida."