ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Additional coronavirus assistance is on its way to the Tampa Bay area.
During a press conference Wednesday in Jacksonville, Gov. Ron DeSantis shared that 100 contract nurses have been sent to help fight COVID-19 around Tampa Bay. And, the governor says "many more" will be dispatched around the state.
The announcement comes after the White House Coronavirus Task Force announced Florida is one of four core states it is monitoring in the "red zone" for COVID-19. Dr. Deborah Birx said the force is specifically looking at 10 counties in Florida, and Hillsborough is one of them.
Thursday's report from the Florida Department of Health shows the state reported another 8,935 cases on July 8. It also showed we reached the highest number of deaths reported in a single day's data: 120. The previous single-day high was 113 deaths reported in one data release in May.
Six Tampa Bay area counties have seen 43,836 confirmed cases of COVID-19 or 10.6 percent of the state's total cases.
The area is also reporting a total of 807 deaths, according to the Florida Department of Health.
Here is our areas breakdown:
Hillsborough: 17,008 cases and 186 deaths
Pinellas: 10,129 cases and 223 deaths
Pasco:3,397 cases and 28 deaths
Polk: 6,310 cases and 128 deaths
Manatee:4,399 cases and 140 deaths
Sarasota: 2,593 cases and 102 deaths
According to DeSantis, these additional nurses will assist with testing, helping out hospital systems and long term care facilities across the state.
Specifics regarding the breakdown of where these additional nurses will be sent once they arrive in Tampa Bay have not yet been released.
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