Fried: DeSantis had 'Stockpile' of Expired COVID Tests

Fried: DeSantis had 'Stockpile' of Expired COVID Tests

Daniel Molina
Daniel Molina
|
January 6, 2022

Earlier this month, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried (D) accused Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) of acting "negligent" when it comes to COVID-19 testing. The accusation was in reference to alleged COVID-19 exams that are set to expire and that have allegedly not been used by the state.

After a press conference held by Gov. DeSantis on Thursday, Commissioner Fried once again shared her concern over the tests, arguing that the Governor had "admitted," to have a "stockpile" of unused exams. The Floridian asked DeSantis about Fried's claim. DeSantis passed off the question to Kevin Guthrie, the head of the Department of Emergency Management, who confirmed the claim.

When Commissioner Fried shared her concern over the tests that were allegedly soon to be expired, the Commissioner did not offer further information as to how she knew the tests were not being administered by the  DeSantis Administration.

She made the call to the Administration, informing that “with omicron infections exploding throughout Florida, I beg of him to release these tests immediately to local counties and cities, and to stand up state-sponsored testing sites."

"To let these tests expire while Floridians anxiously wait for hours in testing lines is negligent at best, and heartless at worst," she added.

This week, Governor DeSantis issued a press conference discussing a number of subjects related to the COVID pandemic, and Commissioner Fried, who's challenging to unseat DeSantis, took to social media to once again comment on the tests.

"At Ron Desantis' press conference, he just admitted that they have a stockpile of '800,000 to a million' expired COVID-19 tests they never sent out," Fried wrote, adding that "they expired (after being extended) between 12/26-30/21)."

Commissioner Fried affirmed that DeSantis must be held "accountable" while reminding Floridians that "when I told you about this before the end of the year  they lied, they  tried  to distract, and they trolled." More importantly, "without your support and pressure, they might have gotten away with  it."

Kevin Guthrie, the head of the Florida Department of Emergency Management, made the state at the press conference, lamenting that they "had between 800,000 and a million Abbott test kits in our warehouse that did expire."

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Daniel Molina

Daniel Molina

Daniel Molina is an award-winning senior reporter based in Miami. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Florida International University. His hobbies include reading, writing, and watching films.

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