The Florida Department of Health reported 6,014 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday. The total helped resume the downward trend for COVID cases which is again below 5,500 daily over the past week.
Florida’s finally seeing a surge in new first dose vaccines this week. According to the daily FDOH vaccine report, over 100,000 first doses have been administered over the prior two days. And, 1.4 million Floridians have now received a first dose and are awaiting a second. Also, nearly 1.8 million have completed the two-dose schedule. With the one-dose Johnson and Johnson vaccines ready to be administered, it’s likely we’ll top 2 million Floridians who’re fully vaccinated this week.
In similar news, CVS has broken with the state of Florida over vaccinations and is now offering appointments to all teachers regardless of age. CVS cited the Biden administration’s guidance as part of the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program as the basis for their decision. 24 CVS locations, including several in South Florida, are offering vaccinations.
Finally, at the Florida Strawberry Festival in Plant City, Florida’s strawberry farmers are saying Florida’s winter weather, where it was cooler than normal but without hard freezes, created perhaps the best cycle for Florida’s strawberry farmers on record. Florida’s strawberries will be especially sweet this year. The festival starts today and runs through March 14th.