Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is facing a backlash after a photo of a Covid-19 patient curled up on a healthcare centre's floor while awaiting treatment went viral.
According to Kailey Tracy of First Coast News, the city of Jacksonville confirmed that the photo was real and was taken at a monoclonal treatment centre at the downtown library on Wednesday.
A woman suffering from Covid-19 symptoms lays on the floor of a monoclonal treatment facility in Jacksonville, Florida. The photo sparked outrage when it went viral on social media. (Reddit screengrab)
According to Ms Tracy, a woman who claimed her husband took the photo posted it to Reddit.
"Woman who posted picture to Reddit says her husband took it, saw people crying in pain. COJ says they were waiting for treatment, providing triple # of wheelchairs now," she reported.
The city issued a statement saying the centre where the photo was taken was not intended for people experiencing advanced covid symptoms.
"This treatment is meant to keep people OUT of the hospital and is designed for those early on in their COVID-19 diagnosis or for those who believe they have been exposed to COVID. Individuals with severe symptoms should contact a medical professional for guidance on the proper treatment for their situation," the city said.
Florida recently opened several free monoclonal antibody centres in order to treat Covid-19 patients in an effort to ease overburdened hospitals in the state.
The centres are intended to provide early treatment in order to keep patients from developing worse symptoms that require hospitalisation.
More than half of the state's ICU capacity is filled with coronavirus patients as of Tuesday. That number dwarfs the national average of 27 per cent, according to data from the Department of Health and Human Services.
Texas has set up similar sites. That state's Republican Governor Greg Abbott is receiving monoclonal antibody treatment after being diagnosed with Covid-19.
So far, more than 10,000 students in Florida have been quarantined or isolated during the first week of the school year.
Mr DeSantis has also been under fire for a controversial executive order prohibiting school districts from enforcing mask mandates for students.
That executive order has been challenged by a number of organisations and school districts. They allege Mr DeSantis has engaged in unconstitutional executive overreach with his order. The governor has threatened to withhold the salaries of school administrators and funding to any schools that refuse to comply with the order.
On Twitter, critics have been lashing out at Mr DeSantis, who has long been criticised for downplaying the threat of the virus and fighting against mitigation policies like mask mandates for businesses and schools.
bourscheid on August 19th, 2021 at 18:57 UTC »
Jacksonville here. Duval County has been the straight epicenter for COVID hospitalizations for the past few weeks. As of right now, we have more per capita hospitalizations than any other county in the country. While Jax has a ton of hospitals, ALL of them are overwhelmed. Critical surgeries and elective surgeries are being cancelled simply because there are no available beds.
Add to this schools starting up last week and the first Jags preseason home game drawing massive crowds, it's bad news. There isn't much hope for things to get better any time soon.
DarthPooka on August 19th, 2021 at 18:17 UTC »
Ron's "Don't Fauci our Florida" just got a new model.
shuzumi on August 19th, 2021 at 18:14 UTC »
and he'll use it as a campaign photo