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The Hillsborough, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach County School boards all voted to impose mandatory mask mandates without parental opt-outs, which was found by the Florida Board of Education to be a violation of state law. The three districts join Alachua and Broward with school masks mandates. The Florida Department of Education was already weighing potential punishments against rogue school districts. The punishments under consideration are funding reductions, additional reporting requirements, and the potential removal of officials responsible for violating state law.
Florida reported 23,335 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday. That total was slightly below last Wednesday’s total, dropping the weekly trend for daily cases to around 21,500. The University of Florida and Johns Hopkins researchers had targeted yesterday as the potential peak of the summer surge in Florida.
Meanwhile, hospitalizations for COVID-19 continue to rise in Florida. The Florida Hospitalization Association reported 16,721 current patients being treated for COVID. That’s an increase of about 200 net new patients for the day.
Furthermore, with the FDA authorizing Moderna and Pfizer “booster” shots for all previously vaccinated people after eight months effective September 20th, 328,346 Floridians will be eligible for a booster once they begin. Additionally, you’ll be provided with the option to obtain a traditional flu vaccine at the same time as a COVID-19 immunization.