TAMPA, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order Tuesday, extending Florida's state of emergency due to COVID-19.
The state of emergency was originally declared more than a year ago on March 9, 2020 when only eight Florida counties had positive cases of COVID-19. Since then, there have been confirmed cases reported across the state's 67 counties.
➡️ Click here to read the original order.
In the past, Gov. DeSantis has extended the order in 60-day increments. And, this time was no different.
The original order activated the Florida National Guard to respond to the pandemic and started the process of getting financial aid from the federal government. It also put a pause on any bureaucratic red tape that would have hindered Florida's ability to respond quickly to the crisis.
"I'm really glad that there's like a signature and it's going to be extended. I think there's the potential to use that as a tool to say, 'Okay, COVID is gone. Now, let's take this away.' If we did that, I think we'd see a serious backslide back to where we were before and I don't want to see that happen," Dr. Jill Roberts an Epidemiologist with USF Public Health said.
The order, which was last renewed in February, also made it possible for health care professionals who were licensed in other states to practice in Florida. That made it easier for more people to get medical attention.
"Without the order being placed, that stops along with the invitation to the federal government to come in and provide sites. Local communities have the power in their constitution, to say we declare a local emergency for public health purposes," Dr. Jay Wolfson with USF Public Health said.
Right now only two of the ten counties -- Hillsborough and Pinellas -- in Tampa Bay have a mask mandate in place.
As Florida Politics pointed out, some local government mask ordinances around the state were also tied to the state's emergency order. Some of those would have expired automatically if DeSantis hadn't extended it.
What other people are reading right now:
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