Florida sees 7,011 new COVID-19 cases as 44% of Orange County infections stem from young adults, teens

ORLANDO, Fla. – Even as vaccination efforts continue, Orange County leaders announced Thursday they are seeing people from ages 15 to 34 make up 44% of recent COVID-19 cases in the county.

Officials added that in 25% of those cases, people ages 15 to 34 tested positive for a COVID-19 variant.

Vaccine eligibility expanded to all adults earlier this week, with colleges and universities, including the University of Central Florida, working to inoculate its students on campus. During Thursday’s update, county health officials said at least 51,000 people between the ages of 16 and 34 have received at least one dose of a vaccine.

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And despite expanded eligibility, Orange County officials announced its busiest COVID-19 vaccine site at the Orange County Convention Center will wrap up operations at the end of May.

“It would be best in this phase of vaccines to have two sites in two different locations of the county that are doing about 2,000 each,” said Dr. Raul Pino, Orange County health officer with the Florida Department of Health. “We are just moving to a different strategy.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added new guidelines earlier this week for cruise lines to which Gov. Ron DeSantis responded Thursday, saying a lawsuit has been filed against the CDC and U.S. federal government, demanding cruises be allowed to sail again from Florida’s ports.

While the CDC has not disclosed when it would lift its no sail order, it has adjusted guidelines that vaccinated people can travel domestically and internationally.

[READ YESTERDAY’S REPORT: Florida reports 7,886 new cases as FEMA sites, mobile clinics prepare for fewer J&J doses ]

Find the state-run COVID-19 dashboard below:

Below is a breakdown of Florida COVID-19 data reported by the state on April 9.

Cases

The Florida Department of Health reported 7,011 new cases on Friday, bringing the state’s overall total to 2,111,807 cases since the virus was first detected on March 1, 2020.

Deaths

Florida reported 64 new virus-related deaths Friday bringing the death toll to 34,626. This number includes the 658 non-residents who died in Florida.

Hospitalizations

As of Friday afternoon, there were currently 3,010 people with the virus hospitalized in Florida, according to the state Agency for Health Care Administration.

Since last March, 86,706 people have been hospitalized in Florida after complications from COVID-19. That number includes the 207 new patients who have been recently hospitalized due to the virus, according to the health department’s daily report released on Friday.

Positivity rate

The percent of positive results was 6.51% Thursday out of 107,653 tests. The numbers reported daily by the state reflect test results from the day prior. 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 began releasing a daily report in December on COVID-19 vaccines administered throughout the state.

FDOH reports 4,190,513 people are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. These individuals either received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine or completed a two-shot series.

As of Friday, 6,942,405 people have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine.

Below is the Central Florida region breakdown of new cases, deaths and hospitalizations for Friday.

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