What to Know
- With 3,289 new COVID-19 cases reported Tuesday, Florida's total was at 103,506
- The state has reported more than 23,000 new cases in the past 7 days
- More than 38,500 of the state's cases are in Miami-Dade and Broward
Florida added more than 3,200 new coronavirus cases Tuesday as the state reported another 64 virus-related deaths.
With 3,289 new COVID-19 cases, the state's total rose to 103,506, according to figures released by the Florida Department of Health.
Florida has reported more than 23,000 cases in the past week, including a daily record of 4,049 COVID-19 cases on Saturday.
CORONAVIRUS LATEST
At a news conference in Orlando Tuesday afternoon, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the median age of people testing positive over the past week contributed to the uptick in cases.
"What we've seen, particularly over the last week, is a real explosion in new cases among our younger demographics," DeSantis said. "When we started this in March, the median age of people who tested positive was I think 65, as the testing ramped up that went into the 50s, but it was pretty much in the 50s for most of the time and then just recently has really plunged so the last week the median age was 35 years old."
Another 64 new deaths related to the virus were confirmed Tuesday, bringing the state's total to 3,237.
Statewide, more than 1,641,800 people have been tested for COVID-19, with the percent positive around 6%. More than 13,300 hospitalizations for COVID-19 have been reported in Florida to-date.
Miami-Dade's case total rose to 26,822, and the county's virus-related deaths rose to 902 Tuesday.
In Broward County, there were 11,744 COVID-19 cases reported, along with 377 virus-related deaths.
Palm Beach County had 11,180 cases and 476 deaths. Monroe County had 166 cases and 4 reported deaths.
On Monday, mayors of some of the largest municipalities in Miami-Dade gathered at a press conference where they announced they will start requiring people to wear masks the moment they step out of their homes. The cities include Miami, North Miami Beach, Aventura, Hialeah and Miami Gardens.
The Florida Keys last week implemented a face mask requirement.
DeSantis acknowledged the increase in positive cases, and said it was partly attributed to increased testing and more younger people testing positive.
"They are testing more than they were for sure, but they're also testing positive at a higher rate than they were before, so that would tell you there's probably been an escalation in transmission over the last seven to ten days," DeSantis said.
DeSantis said the bulk of the new positive tests are coming from people between 25 and 34 years old who are getting out more amid reopenings.
"Most of it is community transmission, particularly among the 20 and 30 year old group, and I think part of that is just natural, you kind of go and you want to be doing things, you want to be more out and about, I think the folks who are a little older and would be more vulnerable have been a little bit more careful. So you're just seeing more contact, and that's why you're seeing this," he said.
DeSantis added that cases were going down in the state's long term care facilities, and said the state was launching a program on Friday to test all staff at long term care facilities every two weeks.
