NEWS: Florida Governor Speaks to Peak of the Health Crisis for Central Florida

For the past several weeks, the nation has put a heavy emphasis on precautionary measures and practices in an effort to help flatten the curve of the global health crisis.

In a press conference yesterday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis spoke from Orlando Health regarding the number of cases in Central Florida, and where he believes the tourism-heavy area of the state is in regards to the “curve”.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, Governor DeSantis praised the way that Central Florida has handled their effort to flatten the curve, and shared that Central Florida has likely passed its peak.

In his remarks, DeSantis noted that “that despite the area being home to major worldwide attractions, the number of cases and hospitalizations so far is lower than predicted.” At the press conference, DeSantis was joined by Orlando Health president and CEO David Strong, who echoed DeSantis’ remarks by saying that, “Certainly the peak, we believe, has passed.” He shared that the highest patient number at Orlando Health occurred April 8th with 54 patients, which trended downwards for the following two weeks.

DeSantis emphasized the importance of testing to prevent the spread of the health crisis. When asked about antibody testing, he shared that FDA-approved kits will be arriving May 1st, with pharmacists able to test people as well.

Last week, the Re-Open Florida Task Force had a variety of meetings take place through teleconferences, with leaders from the theme parks, cruise ship, and tourism industries. To learn more about the current global health crisis and its impact on Florida and the Orlando theme parks, you can visit any of the links below.