Our Opinion: Editorial: Florida's vaccine stand infringes on parental rights The Special Olympics faced a possible $27 million fine for requiring COVID shots, a move the group believed would protect disabled and vulnerable athletes. School districts that defied the Governor's orders were threatened with the loss of state funding. DeSantis sued the federal government to stop the cruise industry from asking passengers to show poof of COVID vaccinations. Executive orders that once helped seniors began restricting local governments from mandating masks. The push to "open" Florida made it easier to take the virus for granted, leading to an uptick in the death rate among seniors living here.īadmouthing masks, social distancing and vaccines became the norm in Florida. Those actions helped stem the virus' spread among the elderly.Īll that changed since April 2021, however, when it became clear that the Governor began weaponizing health care to distinguish Florida from other states coping with the pandemic. Ron DeSantis deserves credit for initially prioritizing seniors for COVID vaccinations in 2020 and using executive orders to curb visitation and increase the screening process for staff, vendors and visitors to assisted living facilities and nursing homes. It wasn't like this for Florida's seniors when the pandemic started. Florida leads the nation with 9,828 COVID-related deaths in that age group. These grim statistics leave the far-more populous states of California and Texas eating our dust. The figures are worse for seniors 85 and older. That's a whopping 36 percent of the 82,065 COVID deaths recorded in the Sunshine State, a higher death rate than any other state. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 30,060 seniors in Florida, 65 and older, have died due to COVID. You don't have to be a pulmonologist to understand what's occurring here: As more and more children, young adults and middle-aged people forgo protective masks and vaccines, the elderly are left exposed and vulnerable - many die as a result.Īccording to the U.S. Unfortunately, for Florida's senior population, it's that so-called "freedom" that's killing too many of them. More: Weeks after 'nightmare' COVID mutant XBB found in Florida, cases still falling Given the state's sunshine allure as a great place for elderly to live, Florida shouldn't be the nation's leader in COVID deaths among older people.įOR SUBSCRIBERS: Florida's seniors lead nation in COVID deaths since April 2021 population can't explain it 2 in the nation behind Maine with the highest percentage of residents 65 and over. Its 4.6 million seniors make the state No. "I think Florida is reeling with that decision at this point."įlorida is a haven for the elderly. Michael Mina told the Post's Christopher Persaud. "I think it was a rather laissez-faire approach to dealing with a rather aggressive virus," former Harvard University epidemiologist Dr. If we want to help our elderly loved ones, we need to do a better job of taking better precautions. Public health experts outside of the state attribute the trend to the DeSantis administration's counterproductive COVID-19 policies. The Florida Department of Health takes issue with the findings, which leaves any resolution up to each and every individual. It's a frightening statistic that Floridians shouldn't ignore. 1 ranking that should bring shame to a state that likes to think of itself as being "free:" The coronavirus has killed more people aged 65 and over in Florida than any other state in the nation.
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