ORLANDO, Fla. – In efforts to meet the state’s high demand for a vaccine, Florida is working to increase access to a shot.
Beginning Friday, Walmart pharmacies in 34 counties will begin administering COVID-19 vaccinations. The governor made the announcement Tuesday, adding that select Sam’s Club locations will also be administering shots. Gov. Ron DeSantis said people do not have to be a member of the wholesale store to schedule an appointment at Sam’s Club.
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The opportunity is made available through the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, which is also boosting vaccine supply for Publix and Winn-Dixie. Pharmacies at Winn-Dixie will begin offering appointments Thursday.
The opportunity is made available through the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, which is also boosting vaccine supply for Publix and Winn-Dixie. Pharmacies at Winn-Dixie will begin offering appointments Thursday.
Walmart opened its vaccine appointment system Wednesday and it quickly crashed as people rushed at a chance to schedule a shot. Walmart’s first day of “technical difficulties” reveals it is going to take more than just access to a shot to meet Florida’s demand.
During a news conference Wednesday, Gov. DeSantis said he’s working to address Florida’s supply issue by increasing shipments of a vaccine, noting it will take time to alleviate the demand for a shot.
Though the struggle seems to be vaccine availability, he said at minimum there are more locations that can now offer and administer the vaccine, increasing access to a shot throughout the state.
Below are links where you can schedule an appointment:
As the federal government works to offer protections against COVID-19, global health leaders are working to track variants of the virus.
As of Wednesday, Florida leads the nation with the most reports of a single variant reporting nearly 350 cases of the B.1.1.7 mutation. This mutation was first detected in the U.K.
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Global leaders are working to learn how the vaccines that are available can protect against variants of the virus, with the World Health Organization recommending countries keep up precautionary measures until the source of these variants can be confirmed. WHO reports the best way to prevent an outbreak of a virus mutation is to encourage vaccinations and mitigate international travel.
[READ YESTERDAY’S REPORT: Central Florida sees uptick in COVID-19 deaths as state reports 7,000 new cases]
Below is a breakdown of Florida COVID-19 data reported by the state on Feb. 10.
Cases
The Florida Department of Health reported 7,458 new cases on Wednesday, bringing the state’s overall total to 1,798,280 cases since the virus was first detected on March 1.
Deaths
Florida reported 165 new virus-related deaths Wednesday, raising the death toll to 28,691. This number includes the 483 non-residents who died in Florida.
Hospitalizations
As of Wednesday afternoon, there were currently 5,129 people with the virus hospitalized in Florida, according to the state Agency for Health Care Administration.
Since March, 75,162 people have been hospitalized in Florida after complications from COVID-19. That number includes the 278 new patients who have been recently hospitalized due to the virus, according to the health department’s daily report released on Wednesday.
Positivity rate
The percent of positive results was 6.59% on Tuesday out of 113,125 tests reported to the state. Health officials say the rate should remain between 5% and 10% to prove a community has a hold of the virus and is curbing infections.
Vaccinations
The Florida Department of Health recently began releasing a daily report on COVID-19 vaccines administered throughout the state.
As of Wednesday afternoon, 2,110,794 people have received at least the first dose of a coronavirus vaccine. The FDOH also reports that 823,126 people have received their second shot.
See COVID-19 data for the Central Florida region below:
| County | Cases | New cases | Hospitalizations | New hospitalizations | Deaths | New deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brevard | 31,414 | 176 | 1,876 | 11 | 690 | 9 |
| Flagler | 5,550 | 32 | 311 | 1 | 76 | -1 |
| Lake | 22,989 | 56 | 1,185 | 1 | 492 | 3 |
| Marion | 25,818 | 148 | 1,601 | 1 | 671 | -1 |
| Orange | 107,756 | 455 | 2,269 | 7 | 1,014 | 3 |
| Osceola | 34,927 | 131 | 1,227 | 6 | 396 | 0 |
| Polk | 53,316 | 311 | 4,098 | 23 | 1,030 | 1 |
| Seminole | 25,323 | 97 | 1,068 | 0 | 394 | 5 |
| Sumter | 7,476 | 40 | 456 | 6 | 215 | 1 |
| Volusia | 32,663 | 191 | 1,595 | 6 | 592 | 27 |
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