New cases also blew out previous records in Sarasota and Manatee
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The Florida Department of Health announced 8,942 new cases of COVID-19 in the state on Friday, shattering the previous record of 5,508 cases set on Wednesday.
Florida now has 122,960 coronavirus cases across the state. The state has now added more cases since June 10 than it did from the start of the pandemic in March through the end of May.
The number of reported deaths increased by 39 to 3,366 since Thursday.
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See our complete coverage of the coronavirus outbreak
Sarasota County’s numbers rose by 106 cases to 1,245 cases, easily eclipsing the previous record of 60 new cases set on Wednesday. Manatee County reported 166 new cases, for a total of 2,368, beating its previous record of 137 new cases set on June 20.
Statewide, 13,987 people have been hospitalized during the pandemic. In Sarasota County, 193 people, or 16 percent, have been hospitalized. In Manatee County 254, 11 percent of all cases, have been hospitalized.
The positivity rate of all tests statewide jumped to 19 percent Friday, just shy of the record high of 20 percent set on Wednesday.
Sarasota Memorial was treating 36 COVID-19 patients on Thursday, more than triple the number of patients hospitalized with the disease at the beginning of the month. The hospital has once again banned visitors amidst the spike in coronavirus cases.
Though municipalities across the state have enacted mandatory mask measures due to the dramatic spread of COVID-19 in recent weeks, only Holmes Beach has enacted a mask order in our area.
Manatee County commissioners are divided on the issue, while the city of Sarasota has promised to give out 50,000 masks ahead of a discussion on whether to make them mandatory.
Gov. Ron DeSantis continued to reject the idea of a statewide mandatory face mask policy, saying “I think you catch more flies with honey than vinegar.”
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