Fourth Florida coronavirus case awaiting federal confirmation

ORLANDO, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday confirmed another presumptive positive case of the coronavirus, or COVID-19, bringing Florida’s total to four patients, along with five other Floridians who are recovering out of state.

DeSantis said the fourth COVID-19 patient is Santa Rosa County in Florida’s Panhandle. The Florida resident tested positive for the virus in a local test. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still needs to confirm the case. Until then the patient is a presumptive positive case of the virus, according to the governor.

During a news conference in Gadsden County Thursday, DeSantis said the Santa Rosa County man is in his 70s with underlying health issues who had recently traveled internationally.

The other three cases are in Hillsborough and Manatee counties.

DeSantis also said five Florida residents who had been traveling in China have also been quarantined elsewhere after testing positive for the virus. He didn’t say where those five people live or where they are being quarantined.

According to the Florida Department of Health website, there are 69 patients awaiting test results in Florida. As of Thursday, nearly 250 individuals are being monitored for symptoms, either due to having close contact with someone who was diagnosed with the virus or because they’ve recently traveled to an affected area.

The virus poses a low risk of spread from one person to another through contact of a shared surface but is spread from person to person through coughing, sneezing or exhaling, according to the CDC and the World Health Organization.

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Symptoms of the virus include fever and signs or symptoms of lower respiratory illness, including cough or shortness of breath. Signs may appear between two to 14 days after exposure, according to the CDC.

The best way health officials say to protect against COVID-19 is to wash your hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, after visiting public places, going to the bathroom, before eating and after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing.

If soap and water are not available health officials say to use hand sanitizers with at least 60% alcohol.

DeSantis spoke in Orlando Wednesday afternoon, saying that the risk for coronavirus infections remains low, even with Florida’s large tourism industry.

No one has tested positive for coronavirus in Orange County, although fewer than 30 people are under observation due to travel to affected countries, according to county health officials.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this report indicated the fourth coronavirus patient in Florida was in Gadsden County. The story has been corrected to clarify the governor made his announcement in Gadsden County but the patient is in Santa Rosa County.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.