The number of Florida hospital inpatients with COVID-19 increased during the past week, according to data posted online Thursday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The data showed that 1,556 inpatients had COVID-19, up from 1,389 a week earlier. Meanwhile, the Thursday numbers showed 278 COVID-19 patients were in intensive-care units, up from 245 a week earlier.
While the numbers have increased, they remain significantly lower than hospitalization levels during the summer, when the highly contagious delta variant of the coronavirus spread across Florida. Hospitalization numbers steadily declined in September, October and November.
Gov Ron DeSantis was in Ocala, Florida with Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo this morning to announce a new monoclonal antibody treatment. Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried recently suggested that Gov. DeSantis needed to pay closer attention to the growing number of COVID testing.
Javier Manjarres contributed to this story
