Florida’s vaccine questions, Gimenez tests positive, Mayor Diaz returns

It’s Monday, Nov. 30 and we’re getting closer to the prospect of a coronavirus vaccine arriving in Florida, but are we ready? That is one of dozens of questions yet to be answered by Gov. Ron DeSantis and his administration as the federal government has assigned governors the job of deciding how to navigate the challenge of rationing the first doses of the vaccine.

While some governors have mapped out their COVID distribution plans, DeSantis has offered the public a draft plan with few specifics. He has declined to answer questions about the details of distribution and the Florida Department of Health has also not offered any details.

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING

U.S. Sen. Rick Scott is also pushing for specifics, last week sending a letter to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar pressing for more information on vaccine funding and distribution plans. We do know that five Florida hospitals are first in line to receive the Pfizer vaccine, which is nearing federal approval.

Video Ron: But how effectively this works in Florida will be a big test for DeSantis, who has touted the vaccine as a primary containment strategy. Meanwhile, the governor has remained on the sidelines all month. Last week, he used a video message for the second week in a row as his only method of communicating to the public about the coronavirus. The tactic allowed him to avoid direct questions from reporters about how state officials are decide who gets the first doses of vaccines and therapeutics and what criteria is used.

His obscurity also allowed him to continue to avoid addressing questions about the president’s unsubstantiated claims that the election was “rigged” and he has not responded to questions about the state’s testing effort and whether he will reinstate the authority of local governments to impose coronavirus restrictions.

CNN is counting: The Herald story on the governor’s video strategy caught the attention of Brian Stelter on CNN’s Reliable Sources on Sunday. He noted that while DeSantis was the only governor in the nation who has not held a single press briefing about COVID-19 in November, there are 14 other governors who only held a single COVID briefing in the last month. Stelter said the governors should show “real leadership” by answering questions on a regular basis.

Shifting burden: Just as President Trump has shifted the burden of containing the coronavirus to the states, the governor has made it more difficult for cities and counties to do it. But he has also used his executive power to simultaneously constrain them and that is becoming a problem as cases surge. Miami-Dade’s newly-elected Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said last week that the governor’s September order forcing the county to reopen bars and nightclubs, and preventing county police from issuing citations for mask violations, limits what she can do to as coronavirus hospitalizations spike again.

On Sunday, the Florida Department of Health reported 7,363 new cases of novel coronavirus and 59 deaths. More than 27% of those new cases came from Miami-Dade County. And the number of patients in ICUs at Miami-Dade County hospitals is rising steadily, a sign that more COVID-19 deaths are coming.

Elder cases surge: For all the talk of protecting the vulnerable in Florida, there has been a 35 percent increase in the number of elderly residents in long-term care facilities in Florida who have tested positive for COVID-19 in the last week. The deaths in the nursing homes with the worst safety records also continues to climb. In the community, the number of cases among people over age 65 also has soared, with a 68% increase in the last two weeks.

Gimenez gets COVID: After months of campaigning and trying to be aggressive about containing coronavirus in Miami, Miami-Dade County’s former mayor, Congressman-elect Carlos Gimenez, last week tested positive for the novel coronavirus along with his wife, Lourdes Gimenez. The 66-year-old Republican said he plans to participate virtually in the New Member Orientation for newly elected members of the U.S. House of Representatives.

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

Vaccine incentives? Should the government pay people to get the COVID-19 vaccine? It’s an idea getting some attention in Washington as some suggest that if the U.S. is to pass another round of stimulus money, Congress should attach some of it to an incentive to encourage people to get vaccinated.

Liability limits: Florida legislators have said little about what their intentions are for addressing the fallout from the coronavirus except that they are expecting to pass legislation to limit liability from lawsuits. The story of Gerardo Gutierrez reminds us what that might look like. The former deli employee at the Sunset Harbour Publix was told by his employer not to wear masks and gloves early in the pandemic. The company said it was just following CDC guidance at the time but now Gutierrez’s family has sued the company after he contracted COVID-19 from a co-worker in the deli and died in April. He was 70.

Diaz for Dem Chair? Miami Mayor Manny Diaz has called Democratic Party leaders in recent days to discuss his interest in leading the state party next year as its chairman. Diaz, the mayor of the city of Miami from 2001 until 2009, said he believes the party is at a tipping point after losing almost every statewide race since the 2014 elections. He said he wants to help right the ship.

Cuban-American at DHS: President-elect Joe Biden announced he will nominate Alejandro Mayorkas, a Cuban-American immigrant who lived in Miami as a child, to serve as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Mayorkas, 60, will be the first immigrant and the first Hispanic to lead the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as well as U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Blinken battle: Antony Blinken, Joe Biden’s secretary of state nominee, has sparred with Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and is likely to face opposition from the senator over his lack of candor. In 2014, Blinken told Rubio during his confirmation hearing that President Barack Obama wouldn’t unilaterally change Cuba policy. Then, just days after Blinken was confirmed by the Senate, Obama ordered the State Department to establish an embassy in Havana for the first time in more than a half-century. Blinken later apologized for not being more forthright with the Senate.

Election violation? Did the mysterious company that gave $550,000 contributions to two political committees backing no-party candidates in three tight state Senate races break the law? The company was not registered as a political committee in Florida but it appears to have had a heavy hand in influencing the success of three Republicans on Election Day.

Stay safe all and remember, the Miami Herald needs your support if we are to continue to supply the meaningful local journalism you count on during these unprecedented times. To support vital reporting such as this, please consider a subscription for unlimited digital access.

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