People 16+ start registering for vaccine appointments as Florida sees 6,362 new COVID-19 cases

State expands eligibility on Monday

ORLANDO, Fla. – Anyone over 16 years old was able to register for upcoming vaccine appointments at the Orange County Convention Center site.

The appointment portal at ocfl.net/vaccine opened at 9 a.m. Friday and was fully booked a short time later. The eligibility requirements expand statewide to include anyone 16 and older on Monday, however, 16 and 17-year-olds will need a parent or guardian to register them for their vaccine appointments and will only be eligible for the Pfizer shots, according to the county. A parent or guardian will also need to accompany their teen to get the vaccine.

Florida is slated to receive more than 300,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine next week, an increase from the more than 122,000 doses this week.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said in Titusville on Thursday that “J&J had millions of doses that were compromised” but he believes the incoming doses are “still on track” for Florida.

“We have not been told anything differently, we’ve asked,” said the governor, adding, “We think it’s going to impact, not next week but the following weeks, and there will definitely be an impact.”

A spokesperson with the Florida Department of Emergency Management at the FEMA vaccine site in Orlando at Valencia College said they have not been notified of any delays for the Johnson & Johnson shipment.

The FEMA-supported site will be giving out 3,000 doses of Pfzier shots per day throughout April. No appointment is needed at the Valenicia College site, which is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, including on Easter.

As the state boosts its vaccine efforts, Florida’s Attorney General Ashley Moody has joined leaders from more than 40 other states to crack down on fake COVID-19 vaccination cards.

In a letter sent to the CEOs of several tech companies, Moody and other attorneys general asked the leaders to monitor and take down ads or links selling the bogus cards, adding buying and selling fake COVID-19 vaccination cards could threaten public safety.

[READ YESTERDAY’S REPORT: Impact of failed J&J doses remains unclear as Florida sees 6,895 new COVID-19 cases ]

Find the state-run COVID-19 dashboard below:

Below is a breakdown of Florida COVID-19 data reported by the state on April 2.

Cases

The Florida Department of Health reported 6,362 new cases on Friday, bringing the state’s overall total to 2,071,015 cases since the virus was first detected on March 1, 2020.

Deaths

Florida reported 96 new virus-related deaths Friday, bringing the death toll to 34,239. This number includes the 653 non-residents who died in Florida.

Hospitalizations

As of Friday afternoon, there were currently 2,869 people with the virus hospitalized in Florida, according to the state Agency for Health Care Administration.

Since last March, 85,538 people have been hospitalized in Florida after complications from COVID-19. That number includes the 165 new patients who have been recently hospitalized due to the virus, according to the health department’s daily report released on Friday.

Positivity rate

The percent of positive results was 6.1% Thursday out of 104,286 tests. The numbers reported daily by the state reflect test results from the day prior. Health officials say the rate should remain between 5% and 10% to prove a community has a hold of the virus and is curbing infections.

Vaccinations

The Florida Department of Health began releasing a daily report in December on COVID-19 vaccines administered throughout the state.

FDOH reports 3,501,600 people are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. These individuals either received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine or completed a two-shot series.

As of Friday, 6,091,034 people have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine.

Below is the Central Florida region breakdown of new cases, deaths and hospitalizations for Friday.

CountyCasesNew CasesHospitalizationsNew hospitalizationsDeathsNew deaths
Brevard37,4511252,17318134
Flagler6,725283643982
Lake26,862861,38506092
Marion29,169641,96729233
Orange124,6874602,602161,1890
Osceola39,9051391,36334870
Polk61,5741844,812141,2677
Seminole30,3031491,19914680
Sumter8,8271555812570
Volusia38,6342211,97177236

To keep up with the latest news on the pandemic, subscribe to News 6′s coronavirus newsletter and go to ClickOrlando.com/coronavirus.


About the Author:

Thomas Mates is a digital storyteller for News 6 and ClickOrlando.com. He also produces the podcast Florida Foodie. Thomas is originally from Northeastern Pennsylvania and worked in Portland, Oregon before moving to Central Florida in August 2018. He graduated from Temple University with a degree in Journalism in 2010.

Recommended Videos