Gov. Ron DeSantis held a news conference Thursday morning to address concerns about the coronavirus outbreak.
Florida has not yet had a confirmed case.
DeSantis outlined the protocols that would take place should there be cases of coronavirus reported in Florida.
Watch DeSantis’ remarks below:
U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy provided Channel 9 with the following statement after DeSantis' news conference:
“Given the lack of information coming out of Tallahassee, I recently convened a roundtable with experts to provide our Central Florida community with accurate information about how to prepare and respond to the coronavirus. I was disappointed that at today’s briefing state officials failed to be forthcoming with the public about suspected cases in Florida. As a top tourist destination and home to many vulnerable seniors, Florida is uniquely at risk from the threat of this illness. In Congress, I’m working to ensure we have a robust federal response to this public health emergency and that Florida has the federal support needed to protect all of our residents.”
If you’re trying to buy face masks in stores across Central Florida, you might run into some issues.
One viewer sent a video of an empty shelf inside an Orlando CVS to Channel 9. Another took a photo of a sign inside a Home Depot that reads, “Limit 10 dusts masks per customer.”
But Dr. Edwin DeJesus, the medical director of the Orlando Immunology Center who specializes in infectious disease, said wearing a mask to guard against the coronavirus is “not recommended by any agencies or the CDC,” he said.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the coronavirus is spread mainly from person to person when an infected person coughs or sneezes.
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A mask you can just buy at any store is “not airtight,” DeJesus said.
But there are other reasons not to buy them up.
“We’re dealing with something that we’re going to need in massive quantities if there’s an infection,” DeJesus said. “We’re going to need those masks to give it to the healthcare workers.”
President Donald Trump addressed the nation on Wednesday, saying Vice President Mike Pence will lead his administration’s coronavirus response efforts.
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He said the risk to Americans is “very low.”
“We have been at a very high level, screening people coming into the country from infected areas,” Trump said.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday warned the public that it’s not a question of if, but when, the virus spreads in the U.S.
A new case was announced in Northern California on Wednesday, bringing the total cases in the U.S. to 60.
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