Florida Hospitals To Get Remdesivir, Which May Help COVID-19 Patients Recover Faster
MIAMI (CBSMiami) - This is a big weekend for doctors in Miami-Dade and throughout the state.
Governor Ron DeSantis says hospitals are getting more medicine that may help patients recover faster.
"Hospitals throughout Florida will be getting additional shipments of therapeutic Remdesivir," said Governor DeSantis.
"I worked with the Vice President and I worked with Secretary Azar to get that expedited so there wouldn't be a gap in treatment."
A spokesperson for Jackson Health System was not aware of whether it had been delivered.
The governor believes the shipment was scheduled to arrive Saturday but didn't say where.
"We were scheduled to get some more later in the month. But there was a need to be able to expedite that," said DeSantis.
Remdesivir is an antiviral medication originally developed to treat Ebola.
The FDA approved its emergency use after a study showed it helped COVID-19 patients recover faster.
"That'll be a lot of vials and hopefully we will be able to serve the patients' needs," said DeSantis.
Hospitals have seen an uptick in admissions statewide.
South Florida has also seen the virus spreading more because of a higher positivity rate.
"We think we may be seeing some declining positivity and then there are other areas that have been pretty consistently 20-percent range link Miami-Dade."
State numbers show Miami-Dade saw 25,000 new cases Friday.
That means 21 percent of people who tested for the first time have the virus.
County Mayor Carlos Gimenez tweeted in part, "I'm hearing reports of many house parties. Remember you're putting yourself and others in as much risk unprotected at these gatherings as you are being in public without a mask."
Gimenez usually sends out a daily dashboard with numbers and rates.
They show first-timers and people who are re-testing to see if they're still positive.
He says he is still worried.
State numbers show Broward saw an increase of 1,500 cases Friday.
That means 15 percent of people, who tested for the first time, were positive.
"Increased from the end of June to July but it has been kind of plateaued for the last two weeks, which is a good sign," said DeSantis.
Top Democrats in the Florida Senate think otherwise.
Minority Leader Audrey Gibson states in part, "There is no effective plan in place to halt the spread, like other states have effectively deployed...the governor's approach guarantees more victims, but little else."
The governor says beds are not an issue. But admits staffing for each COVID-19 patient is an issue, which is why hospitals will be getting help.
There's also a push to open more COVID only facilities for long-term-care residents.
