School districts debate mask policies as Florida reports 1,261 new COVID-19 cases

ORLANDO, Fla. – School leaders across Central Florida are now making decisions about whether to make masks optional for the coming school year.

The Osceola County school board decided Tuesday to make masks optional for all students, parents and employees in district buildings starting July 1.

While masks will become optional at district buildings, they will still be required on school buses. The district said this is in accordance with the CDC guidance for public transportation.

Orange County school leaders have drafted a proposal that would make masks voluntary for the upcoming school year. The proposed policy is set to be presented during a Rule Development Workshop on June 17 with public input, according to the district, and then a vote by the school board and final policy adoption will take place at the July 13 school board meeting with public comment.

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The school district said once the revised policy is approved, it will go into effect no later than Aug. 2.

School districts in Brevard and Lake counties have already decided to make masks optional for the next school year.

Marion County has voted to make masks optional for summer school, but school leaders there are still waiting to decide whether that will apply to the 2021-2022 school year.

Volusia County school leaders are set to vote on a plan to make masks optional on June 14.

While schools are debating what masking will look like in the new school year, one of the state’s major industries, cruises, is working to get back up and running.

Disney Cruise Lines are getting close to setting sail again from Port Canaveral as the company begins testing its coronavirus precautions with simulated cruises. Disney Cruise Lines will begin two-night test cruises of the Disney Dream starting June 29, sailing out of Port Canaveral with volunteer staff acting as passengers.

Disney, along with the other cruise lines, must submit plans to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for simulated cruises to test COVID-19 safety protocols.

Port CEO Capt. John Murray said the Port could begin simulated cruises this month and test sailings are already scheduled for other Florida ports.

The CDC recently approved Carnival Cruise Line’s plans to restart sailings from Port Canaveral.

[READ YESTERDAY’S REPORT: As state resumes daily COVID-19 reports, Florida sees 1,253 new cases]

Find the state-run COVID-19 dashboard below:

Below is a breakdown of Florida COVID-19 data reported by the state on June 2.

Cases

The Florida Department of Health reported 1,261 new cases on Wednesday, bringing the state’s overall total to 2,327,989 cases since the virus was first detected on March 1, 2020.

Deaths

Florida reported 56 new virus-related deaths Wednesday, bringing the death toll to 37,665. This number included the 741 non-residents who died in Florida.

Hospitalizations

As of Wednesday afternoon, there were currently 1,832 people with the virus hospitalized in Florida, according to the state Agency for Health Care Administration.

Since March 2020, 95,438 people have been hospitalized in Florida after complications from COVID-19. That number includes the 228 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 3.33% Tuesday out of 37,834 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.

The positivity rate has remained below 5% for over 15 days in Florida.

Vaccinations

The Florida Department of Health began releasing a daily report in December 2020 on COVID-19 vaccines administered throughout the state.

FDOH reports 8,352,245 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 Wednesday, 10,365,752 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 Wedensday.

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