The rate of COVID transmission and infection in California is now twice that of Florida, raising even more questions about the effectiveness of mask and vaccine mandates for adults and children across the U.S.
The two states charted vastly different courses from the outset of the pandemic, with the Sunshine State banning all virus-related mandates while the Golden State forced residents to comply with strict shutdown orders.
“Cases in California are no longer falling, with the rate increasing to the CDC’s red ‘high’ level of virus transmission stemming from the delta variant ... But Southern states such as Texas and Florida — where state leaders do not enforce face mask policies or support other strict mandates — are in the CDC’s orange ‘substantial’ transmission level,” reports Fox News.
“California’s vaccination rate is higher than states such as Texas and Florida, but that still hasn’t stopped the outbreaks. Sixty-two percent of California’s total population is fully vaccinated, while Florida reports 60% and Texas 54%,” adds Fox.
"This is great news!" Gov. Ron DeSantis' press secretary, Christina Pushaw, told Fox News on Nov. 8. "For two weeks and counting, Florida has had the lowest rate of new COVID-19 cases in the entire country – with no mandates, vaccine passports, or lockdowns. Overall, COVID hospitalizations have been declining for more than 70 days straight, and we’re at an all time low in terms of the number of COVID patients hospitalized statewide."
Read the full report here.
