New COVID-19 cases in the US state of
Florida surged by 50% this week, the
state Health Department reported on Friday.

More than 110,000 new coronavirus cases were
reported statewide over the past week, up from 73,000 last week and 11 times
the 10,000 reported the week of June 11, six weeks ago, according to the Health
Department report.

The fresh surge had continued a six-week rise in
cases that have seen the state become home to 1 in 5 new patients nationally,
becoming the outbreak’s epicenter, the Associated Press reported.

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The weekly report came shortly after Governor Ron
DeSantis barred school districts in Florida from issuing mask mandates for
students when classes resume next month.

The state is reporting numbers comparable to the
ones reported in January, just before vaccinations became widely available.

According to the Florida Hospital Association,
the statewide COVID-19 hospitalizations are nearing last year’s peak. More than
9,300 patients are hospitalized, up from 1,845 a month ago and nearing the
record 10,179 set on July 23, 2020. On a per-capita basis, Florida now has more
people hospitalized than any other state.

The state reported 409 deaths in the past week.
The state has now reported a total of more than 39,000 deaths since March 2020.

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Amid all this, DeSantis has barred schools from
asking students to wear masks on reopening, saying that the barring order will
improve students’ experience.

“I have (three) young kids. My wife and I are not
going to do the mask with the kids. We never have; we won’t. I want to see my
kids smiling. I want them having fun,” DeSantis was quoted as saying by AP
before signing the executive order.

DeSantis also said that there was no evidence
that masks prevent COVID at school.