Your stay-at-home order comes needlessly late, Gov. DeSantis, but still . . . | Editorial
We’ve wanted so much to say, “Good job, Gov. DeSantis! You’ve been on top of Florida’s coronavirus pandemic since the very start!”
But now that DeSantis has issued a 30-day statewide stay-at-home order for all but those seeking essential services, we’ll just say: “Finally.”
Now it’s up to the governor to speak with force and clarity as to what’s next. That means, first and foremost, ensuring that medical personnel, indeed, anyone in the vicinity of sick or potentially contagious people, throughout the state has the protective gear that they need to stay safe themselves, while protecting others. It’s also imperative that Floridians stay home.
DeSantis must ensure that there are hospital beds and vital equipment such as ventilators for the surging number of coronavirus cases in the state. If that means using his supposed clout with the White House, so be it.
That’s the very least he should be doing for Floridians, given that he waited — and waited and waited some more — until the Trump administration gave him the go-ahead to issue Wednesday’s order. Unlike some other governors, DeSantis ignored the obvious for too long, and Floridians likely are sicker for it.
Better responses
In contrast, California, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a statewide order on March 19, even before the state had its first coronavirus death. Tuesday, healthcare officials highlighted a tentative, but hopeful, trendline of a flattening curve. Washington state, too, issued an early order. Govs. Larry Hogan, of Maryland, and Mike DeWine, of Ohio, also took decisive action early on, closing including restaurants, bars, gyms and movie theaters.
At the White House coronavirus press briefing Wednesday afternoon, President Trump confirmed he had spoken to DeSantis that morning and knew of the order. “Gov. DeSantis, a great governor, has issued a stay at home order, that’s good, that’s great,” the president said.
DeSantis’ order exempted religious services. He’s not alone. Ten other states, including New York, Ohio, Louisiana and Kansas, have carved out similar exemptions from their stay-at-home orders. However, this week, a Hillsborough County pastor was charged with defying Tampa’s local stay-at-home orders by holding worship services and flouting a social distancing mandate. We would urge religious leaders to make use of the technology available to communicate and worship with parishioners. Many already do. The Sacramento Bee reported that almost a third of Sacramento County’s coronavirus cases are connected to churches,which led alarmed county officials to issue a special plea for congregations to stop holding services and prayer groups.
Early action
Dr. Deborah Birx, Vice President Pence’s top advisor on the federal government’s coronavirus task force, said that the states that acted early “really talked to their communities and decided to mitigate” before they started seeing the number of coronavirus cases explode. “And now we know that makes a big difference,” she said. “If you wait till you see it, it’s too late.”
Well, Florida’s governor saw it — almost 8,000 coronavirus cases in the state on Wednesday — and still waited. His statewide essential-services-only order, though welcome, is so very late.
This story was originally published April 1, 2020 at 4:33 PM.