Two Central Florida counties surpass 1,000 COVID-19 deaths

ORLANDO, Fla. – Both Polk and Orange counties reported their 1,000 coronavirus-related deaths on Friday since the start of the pandemic. Both counties have now each surpassed 1,000 virus deaths.

This is because Florida seniors are still struggling to book COVID-19 vaccine appointments. Making an appointment to get the COVID-19 vaccine can be anything but quick and painless.

A Florida woman helps people she’s never met get on the coveted list.

Jenn Greenberg has helped dozens of seniors she has never met navigate the confusing, often chaotic process of getting a COVID-19 vaccine.

Greenberg is part of a 120-member volunteer force that helps Florida residents aged 65 and over overcome the daunting hurdles of state-run registration systems that are poorly organized and rely heavily on a technology that is often a foreign language to them is.

[Here’s how to register for the COVID-19 vaccine in Florida]

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“I realized how many barriers there were, which made it very difficult to set up appointments,” Greenberg said.

She says the systems not only negatively impact seniors, but also exacerbate income and racial inequalities.

Florida Rep. Anna Eskamani (D-Orlando) says wealthier communities are already seeing greater vaccination coverage than lower-income neighborhoods.

Click or tap here to learn more about Greenburg’s initiative to help vaccinate seniors.

New federal efforts may soon improve vaccine distribution as the Pentagon will deploy more than 1,100 troops to five vaccination centers in what will be the first wave of increased military support for the White House’s campaign to get more Americans vaccinated against COVID. 19.

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Two of the five new military teams will attend vaccination centers that open in California. Coronavirus senior adviser Andy Slavitt said military personnel will arrive at those locations in just over a week. Three additional centers are expected to be announced shortly.

[READ YESTERDAY’S REPORT: Florida reports 7,000 new COVID-19 cases as counties work to keep vaccine secure]

Cases

The Florida Department of Health reported 10,946 new cases on Friday, bringing the state’s total number to 1,763,873 cases since the coronavirus pandemic began in March.

Deaths

Florida reported 215 new virus-related deaths on Friday, bringing the death toll to 27,913. This number includes the 456 non-residents who died in Florida.

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Hospital admissions

Friday afternoon, 5,428 people were currently hospitalized in Florida with the virus, according to the State Agency for Health Care Administration.

As of March, 73,970 people have been hospitalized in Florida after complications from COVID-19. That number includes the 339 new ones Patients recently hospitalized for the virus, according to the health department’s daily report released Friday.

Positivity rate

The percentage of positive results was 5.8% for the 188,606 tests reported to the state. Health officials say the rate should stay between 5% and 10% to prove that a community has a hold on the virus and is keeping infections in check.

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Vaccinations

The Florida Department of Health recently began publishing a daily report on COVID-19 vaccines being administered statewide.

Friday afternoon 1,894,209 people were vaccinated in Florida. The FDOH also reports that 554,502 people have received their second shot.

See COVID-19 data for the Central Florida region below:

Province	Cases	New cases	Hospital admissions	New hospital admissions	Deaths	New dead
Brevard	30,459	306	1,840	7	666	3
Flagler	5,447	42	303	2	73	0
Lake	22,500	189	1.170	11	459	6
Marion	25,221	218	1,590	18	649	7
Orange	105,725	736	2,243	11	1001	11
Osceola	34,315	216	1.211	4	384	-1
Polk	52,029	399	4.013	16	1008	17
Seminole	24,764	129	1057	5	386	1
Sumter	7,323	42	441	2	206	19
Volusia	31,863	187	1,557	10	542	1

To keep up to date with the latest news about the pandemic, subscribe to News 6’s coronavirus newsletter and go to Click Orlando.com/coronavirus.