‘This sets a precedent:’ Florida to resume weekly COVID reporting as part of settlement

The Florida Department of Health will soon restart weekly public COVID-19 data reporting.

It’s the result of a settlement reached in a lawsuit brought more than two years ago, which sought COVID statistics after the state stopped making the data publicly available.

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The Florida Department of Health stopped sharing daily statistics on the state’s COVID dashboard in June of 2021.

Those statistics had previously included infection rates, case numbers, and deaths down to the zip code level, broken down by categories including age, race, and gender.

READ: Jacksonville among top 5 COVID-19 ‘boomtowns’ based on population growth, study shows

Former State Representative Carlos Guillermo Smith recalls at the time, the lack of data made local public health decisions incredibly difficult.

“As the Delta Variant was ripping its way through Florida,” said Smith.

Smith made a public records request for the data and was denied.

READ: Americans can now get an updated COVID-19 vaccine

So, he sued.

More than two years later, he’s now reached a settlement with the state.

The Florida Department of Health has agreed to restart weekly reporting of case counts, vaccinations, and deaths broken down by county, age, race, and gender for a period of three years on their website.

While the state admitted no fault, it agreed to pay more than $150,000 for Smith’s attorney’s fees.

READ: DeSantis’ health officials to disclose withheld Florida COVID data in settlement

Former Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith of Orlando told Action News Jax “This sets a precedent that future administrations are gonna be less likely to violate public records laws, especially as it relates to public health data.”

In an emailed statement, the Florida Department of Health countered Smith’s characterization of the settlement, arguing it never stopped publishing COVID data.

“COVID-19 data has been made available through historical Department reports, and the Department has always reported data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It is unfortunate that we have continued to waste government resources arguing over the formatting of data with armchair epidemiologists who have zero training or expertise,” said Florida Department of Health Press secretary James Williams.

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Smith says the victory will ensure Floridians have open access to COVID data should another surge arise, but he argued for some, the resolution in this case comes too late.

“23,000 Floridians died during the Delta surge in our state. Not only did the DeSantis Administration restrict their access to information about this deadly virus, they downplayed the threat of the virus in order to help Ron DeSantis run for President and fit their political narrative. Unfortunately, that decision cost lives,” Smith stated.

The Florida Department of Health will have to resume weekly reporting starting October 28.

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