Use It Or Lose It, Governor Told Hospitals That Received Vaccines

TAMPA, FL — Use it or lose it. That was the message Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis presented to hospitals that have received portions of the state's coronavirus vaccine allotment.

Following complaints that the vaccines which have been distributed around the state weren't being dispersed fast enough, DeSantis said any hospital chain that fails to meet its vaccination goals will have its doses taken away and given to facilities that will distribute them quicker.

“I do not want to see a vaccine sitting around not being used when you could be putting a shot in an arm,” DeSantis said during a news conference in Longwood Monday.

Florida is finishing up the first wave of vaccinations, focusing on front-line health providers, first responders and long-term health facility residents and staff.

This week, counties throughout Florida will begin vaccinating all other residents age 65 and older.

During a press conference at Orlando Health in Seminole County, Governor Ron DeSantis announced four new actions the state is undertaking as it enters the fourth week of its own version of Operation Warp Speed to vaccinate Floridians age 65 and older.

“Florida is putting seniors first and I’m pleased to announce four new actions that will continue our proactive approach to offering the vaccine to Floridians 65 and older, as well our continued efforts to vaccinate frontline health care workers and long-term care facility residents," said DeSantis, speaking at Orlando Health in Seminole County.

He said the partnerships between Florida hospitals and the states are a critical part of that effort but hospitals alone won't be able to reach the state's vaccination goals.

“To that end, I am directing the Florida Division of Emergency Management to partner with the Florida Department of Health to identify additional sites to administer the vaccine and to be open seven days per week, including the conversion of state-supported testing sites and partnerships with places of worship in underserved communities," DeSantis said. "I am also directing the division to hire additional nurses to support these sites and accelerate vaccinations in Florida’s over 3,000 assisted living facilities. We will continue to build on these efforts in the coming weeks.”

The governor was joined by Orlando Health CEO David Strong, State Sen. Jason Brodeur and State Rep. Scott Plakon, who help him kick off the opening of Orlando Health’s seven new community vaccination sites.

DeSantis' new actions to distribute vaccines as quickly as possible include:

1) Expanding access to vaccine with additional state-supported sites. DeSantis has directed the Florida Division of Emergency Management to work with the Florida Department of Health to identify state-run COVID-19 testing sites that can convert into vaccine sites.

2) Deploying the vaccine into underserved communities.DeSantis has directed the Florida Division of Emergency Management to identify places of worship and other locations in underserved communities where the vaccine may be administered. Florida has already begun a pilot program in Escambia County where more than 500 seniors have received vaccines and have been scheduled for their booster shots, which they will receive at the same location.

3) Reinforcing vaccination efforts with additional staff. DeSantis has directed the Florida Division of Emergency Management to immediately hire 1,000 contract nurses to support vaccination efforts. These nurses will be deployed throughout the entire state to help run vaccination sites, including public sites run by the state or counties and private sites such as South Seminole Hospital. These nurses will supplement the personnel already in the field, including 800 Florida National Guardsmen who have been supporting the state’s response since the beginning of the pandemic.

4) Continuing to prioritize long-term care facility residents. DeSantis is directing the Florida Division of Emergency Management to assume additional responsibilities regarding the administration of vaccines in Florida’s more than 3,000 assisted living facilities, supplementing and accelerating the efforts being undertaken by CVS and Walgreens in their agreements with the federal government.

If all goes as planned, DeSantis said Florida will be the first state to:

• Begin offering vaccines to staff and residents at more than 4,000 long-term care facilities.
• Begin offering vaccines to EMTs and paramedics.
• Mobilize county health departments and county emergency managers to actively vaccinate seniors in the community.

After completing a pilot program at five hospitals in Pinellas and Broward counties in which front-line workers and residents of long-term care facilities received the Pfizer vaccination, DeSantis mobilized Florida National Guard strike teams to offer vaccines at other long-term care facilities. Staff and residents at more than 100 facilities in Pinellas and Broward were vaccinated in six days.

After receiving a shipment of the Moderna vaccine, DeSantis distributed the vaccine to more than 170 hospitals around the state ordering that it be given to residents age 65 and older.

Last week, the state distributed vaccines to all 67 county health departments in Florida including 127,000 doses of Moderna and 118,900 doses of Pfizer vaccines.

DeSantis said the state will continue the distribution process as it receives more shipments of the vaccine on a weekly basis.

Meanwhile, Florida hospitals are continuing to see high numbers of acute cases.

Mary Mayhew, president and CEO of the Florida Hospital Association, said hospital staff is pulling double duty.

“We’ve got a storm to weather right now as the hospitalizations are increasing,” said Mayhew. “While we have optimism about the vaccine, we’re battling on two fronts.”

The Florida Department of Health reported 11,215 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, substantially less than the record number of 20,976 cases reported on New Year's Eve. In the past seven days, 120 more Floridians have died due to the coronavirus.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, 1,376,692 people have tested positive for the coronavirus; 63,505 have been hospitalized and 22,415 people have died in Florida.