Pinellas County Commissioners Extend Coronavirus Restrictions Through Oct. 2

PINELLAS COUNTY, FL — The Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners on Tuesday extended its State of Local Emergency declaration for COVID-19 through Oct. 2 and delegated the authority for near-future extensions to County Administrator Barry A. Burton until further notice.

By state law, the emergency declaration must be extended every seven days to remain in effect.

The ordinance requiring face coverings and social distancing within public places remains in effect so long as the State of Local Emergency is effective, unless amended or repealed by separate action of the county commission.

Board members received an update from Dr. Ulyee Choe, who reported that COVID-19 trending data remains stable, and an expert panel of four healthcare administrators.

Dr. Larry Feinman, Chief Medical Officer of HCA West Florida; Dr. Michael Longley, Chief Medical Officer of AdventHealth North Pinellas; Dr. Nishant Anand, Chief Medical Officer of BayCare; and Dr. Nichelle Threadgill, Chief Medical Officer of Community Health Centers of Pinellas, concurred unanimously that face coverings and social distancing are the most effective measures available at this time to slow the spread of COVID-19. Along with Dr. Choe, they cautioned against relaxing requirements, citing the forthcoming convergence of flu season and COVID-19.

Fiscal Year 2021 budget
In other action Tuesday, the Board adopted resolutions approving the final millage rates and budgets for Fiscal Year 2021. The approved total budget of $2.7 billion includes funding to support various community priorities. Additional details may be found on the Citizen Budget website at http://www.Pinellascounty.org/budget.

This press release was produced by the Pinellas County Government. The views expressed here are the author’s own.