Miami Herald • 9th March 2021

‘ ’22 is right around the corner.’ DeSantis’ optics were focus of Lakewood Ranch vaccine organizers

Organizers of the three-day vaccine distribution event last month in Lakewood Ranch in Manatee County were focused on more than shots, text messages between them and the governor’s office show. They were also keenly aware of the political optics of bringing Gov. Ron DeSantis into town to promote vaccines in their Republican-rich neighborhood. Rather than rely on a random selection of vaccine-eligible residents, the governor’s staff wanted them to create a list of who would get a vaccine.

Miami Herald • 4th March 2021

Wealthy Keys enclave received COVID vaccines in January before much of the state

As Florida’s eldest residents struggled to sign up to receive their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, nearly all those aged 65 years and older in a wealthy gated enclave in the Florida Keys had been vaccinated by mid-January, according to an emailed newsletter obtained by the Miami Herald.

Miami Herald • 2nd March 2021

Legislating in the time of COVID-19 means putting protections over public access

Located on the tallest hill in the highest part of the state, halfway between Pensacola and Jacksonville, Florida’s Capitol is hard to reach for most Floridians during the annual legislative session.But this year, as legislators opened their 60-day session Tuesday trying to navigate a global pandemic and stay healthy enough to avoid disrupting their activities, access to elected government is even more distant.

Miami Herald • 1st March 2021

As governor cherry-picked data, the pandemic took a toll on Florida Sunshine laws

Open government advocates say the state of Florida’s Sunshine laws is darker this year because of the governor’s selective release of information and his attempt at times to actively shield critical details about the depths of the crisis from becoming public.

Miami Herald • 9th November 2020

Experts wonder and warn: Is Florida the nation’s test case for COVID-19 herd immunity?

Whether Floridians know it or not, Gov. Ron DeSantis is pursuing a policy that will allow the virus to spread freely in the state until most of the population becomes infected — or is vaccinated vaccine — while attempting to protect those thought to be most vulnerable. Critics say it is an irresponsible herd immunity policy. Advocates call it "focused protection."

Miami Herald • 2nd October 2020

An ALF tragedy: COVID didn’t kill Rita at age 95, despair and loneliness did

An outgoing and healthy 95-year-old mother decided to stop eating after isolation in a Florida ALF left her lonely and confused. Her daughters blame flawed and inconsistent COVID restrictions.

Miami Herald • 23rd July 2020

COVID is leaking into Florida nursing homes as regulators allow exceptions

More than 6,700 staff and residents at nursing homes and assisted living facilities have been infected with COVID-19 in the month of July, a 129% rise that regulators blame on vendors and staff who unwittingly bring in the virus. But the state also played a role.

Miami Herald • 17th July 2020

DeSantis’ COVID strategy: Talk about the good, avoid talking about how to prevent the bad

Since the onset of COVID, even as infections and deaths have soared, Florida Gov. DeSantis has delivered a shifting narrative focused on defending his actions.

Miami Herald • 12th June 2020

The Florida COVID-19 data said one thing while Gov. DeSantis sometimes said another

When Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that most of the state would reopen for business on May 4, he cited his administration’s “data-driven strategy” and success at achieving “critical benchmarks in flattening the curve” to contain COVID-19. But a review of the data the governor was using shows his public pronouncements were often in conflict with real-time facts. He either wasn’t aware the data showed that community spread, regional outbreaks and death tolls were worse than he was telling Floridians, or he selectively focused on outdated statistics to make his case.

Miami Herald • 16th June 2020

Florida’s testing program offers snapshot of COVID-19’s deadly toll in long-term care

Gov. Ron DeSantis reversed course and ordered universal testing at nursing homes and assisted living facilities, revealing the devastation COVID-19 has wrought on facilities in Florida.

Miami Herald • 13th January 2021

Rosa Zamanillo hadn’t left her elder-care home in 3 years. COVID-19 got her anyway

In four days, Rosa Zamanillo went from singing Cuban ballads and eating well at the Residential Plaza assisted living facility in Miami, to being unrecognizable by her youngest son. They told her she didn't have COVID-19.

Miami Herald • 26th June 2020

Are legislators AWOL? State faces massive budget hole and no role for Legislature

Is the Florida Legislature ceding its oversight of the growing budget deficit and public health crisis over the coronavirus to the governor? Democrats say it is but the leaders of Florida’s Republican-controlled state House and Senate disagree. Florida’s elected leaders say they have no plans to return to Tallahassee until after the election.

Miami Herald • 12th June 2020

Reluctantly, under pressure, Florida disclosed COVID-19 data. What the numbers tell us

As Florida’s government built a plan to contain the effects of a global pandemic, it elevated one tool above all others: data. But unlike the way the state has handled other infectious diseases, the COVID-19 records have been incomplete, changed without explanation, dropped from the Department of Health website without warning, or don’t match the public narrative advanced by the governor. The Miami Herald investigated.

Miami Herald • 22nd April 2020

Shark Tank investor among those who tried to sell N95 masks at a high price to state

A hefty offer, a special arrangement with a law firm, and a promise of 1 million N95 masks got Florida emergency management officials into a Shark Tank-style deal for the precious pieces of protective equipment.

Miami Herald • 14th April 2020

Which elder-care facilities have COVID-19? Florida won’t say, filling families with dread

Barred from visiting their relatives in the midst of a pandemic, people with relatives in nursing homes and assisted living facilities across the state say they are also being deprived of information that could reassure them that their loved ones are safe.

Miami Herald • 7th April 2020

Inside Florida’s frenzied, failed dash to dole out $600 million in no-bid mask deals

With its stockpile of protective masks low, Florida embarked on a buying frenzy three weeks into the state emergency. More than $600 million in deals have resulted in virtually no product.

Miami Herald • 4th April 2020

Gov. DeSantis issues stay-home order limiting Florida to essential services for April

After weeks of resisting a statewide stay-home order, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on April 2 that he would sign an executive order limiting all activity in Florida to essential services for the next 30 days to try to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Miami Herald • 1st April 2020

Tale of two cities: Research shows risk of Miami-Dade’s gradual coronavirus response

Data from smart thermometer company Kinsa Health found that as social-distancing measures are enacted across the country, the number of people who got sick in a community depended on how early mitigation efforts were implemented.

Miami Herald • 23rd March 2020

FL Gov. DeSantis pushes back against calls for statewide stay-home order

Gov. Ron DeSantis took to the airwaves Monday to vigorously defend his decision not to order people to stay home. “You simply cannot lock down our society with no end in sight,’’ he said at a teleconference from the governor’s office with only television reporters in attendance.

Miami Herald • 21st March 2020

Has Gov. DeSantis been too cautious in moves to deal with coronavirus? Some experts say yes.

There is no handbook for governing in the time of the coronavirus, but as the number of positive cases of COVID-19 has grown more than seven-fold in Florida in the last week, Gov. Ron DeSantis has proven to be more cautious than governors in similarly situated states, including some with even fewer fatalities.