ORLANDO, Fla. — During a press conference Monday promoting one of the state's rapid response sites administering monoclonal antibodies to patients, Gov. Ron DeSantis shed some light about daily case reporting and the status of Florida's supply of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
In the past, the governor's office told 10 Tampa Bay that there were "no plans to resume the daily reports" that became commonplace during the pandemic and into 2021.
The Florida Department of Health switched to releasing reports once a week in early June as new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations dropped. But since then, the more transmissible delta variant has taken hold as the more prominent variant and vaccinations to fight it have stalled.
On Monday, DeSantis doubled down on Florida's approach to reporting saying, releasing a daily report is one and the same as the Florida Department of Health uploading daily data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"They are released to -- every day CDC puts out the case numbers and that's something that people have had access to the whole time," he said before later adding that the "CDC is doing the same thing that Health would do."
And as for why you might not be able to get a Johnson & Johnson vaccine these days? The governor says it has to do with a lack of shipments from the federal government.
According to DeSantis, Florida's last shipment of the J&J vaccine arrived on May 2 and now the stockpile the state once had has been depleted.
"If there's more J&J that comes in, then it, obviously, it will be going out," he said.
If DeSantis had his way, more of the single-dose shot would be Florida bound, sharing that he thinks the specific vaccine helps logistically with drive-thru sites.
"As soon as we get it, you know, we will feed these high through put sites no problem," he added.
The number of patients hospitalized with confirmed cases of COVID-19 had climbed to 15,656 as of Aug. 16, according to the Florida Hospital Association.
DeSantis has been an outspoken opponent of any pandemic-related lockdowns or mandates, sparking questions from leaders like President Joe Biden and the nation's top infectious disease doctor, Dr. Anthony Fauci, as it relates to protecting Floridians from the coronavirus.
