Dr. Deborah Birx says the lack of clear, concise and consistent message in the earliest months of its spread resulted in inaction across the federal government.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will hold a roundtable discussion in Tallahassee.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A year after the COVID-19 outbreak temporarily shuttered much of the economy and plunged the nation into debates over masks and lockdowns, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis convened a hand-picked panel of health experts at the state Capitol on Thursday to help validate the actions he took against the pandemic. One by one, the experts provided vindication for DeSantis, whose insistence on lifting lockdowns, reopening schools and undermining mask mandates came under scrutiny as the public health crisis unfolded. DeSantis said Florida has already vaccinated more than 3 million seniors, leading many other states. “We’ve now vaccinated close to 2/3 of all seniors in Florida, of course, there’s no mandate,” the governor said.

The district has been at the center of a worsening coronavirus outbreak, with over 160 cases reported over the first three weeks in January. As of Sunday, Hong Kong has reported 10,086 cases of the coronavirus, with 169 deaths recorded. The nation of 26 million people has reported fewer than 30,000 virus cases and a little over 900 deaths. There have been 373,090 total virus cases and a death toll of 3,279 since the pandemic began, according to the health department. The U.S. accounts for roughly one of every four cases reported worldwide and one of every five deaths.

WASHINGTON – Dr. Scott Atlas, a science adviser to President Donald Trump who was skeptical of measures to control the coronavirus outbreak, is leaving his White House post. A White House official confirmed that the Stanford University neuroradiologist, who had no formal experience in public health or infectious diseases, resigned at the end of his temporary government assignment. Atlas joined the White House this summer, where he clashed with top government scientists, including Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx, as he resisted stronger efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic that has killed more than 267,000 Americans. Just weeks ago on Twitter he responded to Michigan's latest virus restrictions by encouraging people to “rise up” against the state's policies. Atlas was hired as a “special government employee," which limited his service to government to 130 days in a calendar year — a deadline he reached this week.

Trump himself has urged supporters to push Whitmer to reopen the state following virus restrictions, though many rules had been lifted previously. And 14 men have been charged in connection with an alleged plot to kidnap the governor. Asked if the state can do anything to assist closed businesses and their soon-to-be laid-off employees, Whitmer again urged Trump and Congress to enact a relief law. Brian Calley, president of the Small Business Association of Michigan and a Republican former lieutenant governor, also called on Congress and the president to act. Without aggressive steps now, she warned, Michigan could see 20,000 more deaths by February.

With a total of 8.2 million coronavirus cases during the pandemic, India is the second worst-hit country behind the United States. Still, health officials say New Delhi remains in the grip of its third and worst wave of infections yet. But health officials elsewhere say the virus is also spreading because people are still going to family gathering such as weddings, baby showers and barbecues. Adams and his aide were in Hawaii helping with a spike in coronavirus cases. The most recently available data from Johns Hopkins University says that as of Sunday there had been 937,317 COVID-19 cases reported in Texas.

The state reported 103 infections that day, the largest single day increase in cases. France’s government has shut down all nonessential businesses and ordered people to stay indoors for the next month to slow accelerating virus infections, hospitalizations and deaths. The Geneva canton, or region, said the University Hospitals of Geneva on Sunday counted 474 people hospitalized with coronavirus infections, including 56 in intensive care. Iran has reported more than 620,000 confirmed virus cases in all. Montenegro recently has seen a surge in virus cases.

NEW YORK – Twitter blocked a post Sunday from an adviser to President Donald Trump who suggested that masks do not work to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Scott Atlas, who joined the White House in August as a science adviser, had tweeted “Masks work? The tweet violated a Twitter policy that prohibits sharing false or misleading misinformation about COVID-19 that could lead to harm, a company spokesperson said. The policy bans statements that have been confirmed to be false or misleading by experts such as public health authorities. Researchers have concluded that masks can control the spread of the virus, and public health experts have urged the public to wear them.

The revelation about how much President Donald Trump pays in taxes? Then, just as quickly, they receded into memory with the revelation Friday that Trump had tested positive for COVID-19. The coronavirus story unfurled shortly after 8 p.m. Eastern on Thursday when Jennifer Jacobs, Bloomberg News White House reporter, tweeted that sources had told her that Hope Hicks, one of Trump's closest aides, had tested positive. Then, at 12:54 a.m. Eastern, the president tweeted that both of them were positive. Were reporters who attended a White House news briefing on Thursday at risk?

According to the Florida Department of Health, Quest violated Florida law when it failed to report COVID-19 results in a timely manner, including nearly 75,000 cases dating as far back as April. Quest Diagnostics said in a statement the delay in reporting was due to a technical issue. The tests are 75,000 of the approximately 1.4 million COVID-19 tests Quest has reported to the state, according to the statement. According to Quest, the private lab has provided more COVID-19 testing for Florida than any other laboratory. On Tuesday, the state reported 190 people had recently died as a result of complications from COVID-19. What is not fully clear yet is the number of COVID-19 cases connected to schools across the state.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida education leaders joined the governor and medical professionals Monday to reinforce the state’s stance on reopening schools and allowing in-person learning during the coronavirus pandemic. Do the virtual, and really not fall far behind,” DeSantis said about the enhanced virtual opportunities available to students. Atlas was making at least three stops with DeSantis around the state Monday, including in Tampa and The Villages. “If you have a cough you’re three times as likely to spread than if you don’t have a cough,” he said. “We have the data, there’s extraordinarily low risk in children, there’s extraordinarily very low risk in everybody else in the school.

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. – A student at Tohopekaliga High School has tested positive for COVID-19, prompting officials to ask an additional 22 students to quarantine, according to the Osceola School District. Cloud has had to shut down its campus entirely for two weeks after 10 teachers tested positive for the deadly respiratory illness. Ron DeSantis’ stance that children are less at risk for becoming seriously ill if they contract COVID-19. “You have to remember, the children have no serious risk from this disease, it’s very safe for them. According to the Florida Department of Health, 48,928 children across the state have tested positive for COVID-19 since March and eight pediatric deaths have been reported.

ORLANDO, Fla. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis made his rounds Monday updating the public on the states response to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and he had assistance from the White House in the form of the Trump Administrations newest coronavirus advisor, Dr. Scott Atlas. In mid-August, President Donald Trump announced Atlas had joined the White House as a pandemic adviser. DeSantis declared Monday that there is no going back for Florida now that most businesses and institutions have been able to reopen. We will never do any of these lockdowns again, he told reporters in The Villages.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Scott Atlas said the college football season can be played safely this fall amid the coronavirus pandemic. I mean they are among the most fit people in the universe, he said referring to college athletes. Theyre very low-risk people.He noted a lot of cities depend on college football, saying theyll take an economic hit as the Big Ten football conference and the PAC-12 decided not to have college football this fall. The University of Florida, Florida State University, University of Central Florida, and the University of Miami football teams are all set to play this fall. The 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship will be played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami in January.

Trump has announced that Dr. Scott Atlas, a frequent guest on Fox News channel, has joined the White House as a pandemic adviser. Trump last week announced that Dr. Scott Atlas, a frequent guest on Fox News Channel, has joined the White House as a pandemic adviser. Public health experts have long bemoaned Trump's efforts to politicize the virus and have encouraged him to let doctors and scientists lead the nation's response. I think he's utterly unqualified to help lead a COVID response," said Lawrence Gostin, a Georgetown University law professor who specializes in public health. White House spokesman Judd Deere, in a statement, praised Atlas as a world renowned physician and scholar and dismissed questions about Atlas' qualifications.