Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis got a reprieve Wednesday after federal regulators approved a three-month extension for the nearly one million expired COVID-19 tests recently discovered stockpiled and forgotten in a state-run warehouse.
As omicron cases explode in the state, and Floridians wait hours in lines for available tests, DeSantis in his usual anti-vaxxer style prioritizes monoclonal treatment over tests, masks, and vaccines.
Since late December, Florida’s Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, a Democrat who is running against DeSantis, has begged the governor to do something with the staggering number of unused COVID-19 tests. DeSantis’ office continued to deny their existence and accused Fried of lying.
But, just as DeSantis was able to breathe again—and that appeared to be difficult for him not long ago, after a two-week disappearance and then a press conference showing him struggling to catch his breath—now his best buddy, former President Donald Trump, kinda threw him under the bus.
Tuesday, Trump gave an interview to One America News, during which he was asked about his comments in another interview touting the value of COVID-19 vaccines. Trump doubled down.
“Well, I’ve taken it,” said Trump plainly. “I’ve had the booster. Many politicians—I watched a couple of politicians be interviewed and one of the questions was, ‘Did you get the booster?’ Because they had the vaccine, and they’re answering like—in other words, the answer is ‘yes’ but they don’t want to say it. Because they’re gutless. You gotta say it, whether you had it or not. Say it. But the fact is that I think the vaccines saved tens of millions throughout the world. I’ve had absolutely no side effects.”
Uhhhh… could Trump be talking about his little racist friend DeSantis, who reportedly received the single-shot Johnson & Johnson, but has refused to say whether he has received the booster?
“I’ve done whatever I did,” he said in an interview with Fox News when asked if he’d been boosted. “The normal shot.” Whatever the fuck that means.
Last week, Politico asked DeSantis’ spokeswoman Christina Pushaw if the governor had been boosted.
"I am not privy to the governor's private medical decisions and am unable to share information about his booster status," Pushaw responded. "Governor DeSantis has consistently said that vaccination (and by extension, boosters) should be a personal choice, and anyone who has questions or concerns should consult with a health care provider."
When it comes to COVID-19, DeSantis, a potential GOP presidential candidate in 2024, runs a rocky and deadly ship. Both he and his newly appointed clueless Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, deny the validity of taking any protocols to mitigate the virus, and numbers in the state, as a result, have remained out of control. The case positivity rate is over 35%, according to COVID Act Now, making it the third-highest positivity rate, behind California and Texas.
And now, even how his beloved monoclonal antibody drugs are being distributed has come into question.
The Tampa Bay Times reported Tuesday that Florida shipped a scare new COVID-19 treatment to a private clinic in Broward County before sending it to Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital, the largest solid organ transplant center in the Southern U.S. South Florida hospitals are in desperate need of monoclonal treatments and have been forced to portion out what they do have to their most vulnerable patients.
Evusheld can provide up to six months of protection against COVID-19, according to the Food and Drug Administration, which authorized the treatment for emergency use on Dec. 8.
iCare Mobile Medicine received more Evusheld in the state’s first shipment in December than any other hospital or medical provider in Florida—and no one knows why or if they do, no one is saying.
Up to this point, Florida's health department has refused to explain the state’s prioritization to any media outlet.
As omicron cases explode in the state, and Floridians wait hours in lines for available tests, DeSantis in his usual anti-vaxxer style prioritizes monoclonal treatment over tests, masks, and vaccines.
Since late December, Florida’s Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, a Democrat who is running against DeSantis, has begged the governor to do something with the staggering number of unused COVID-19 tests. DeSantis’ office continued to deny their existence and accused Fried of lying.
But, just as DeSantis was able to breathe again—and that appeared to be difficult for him not long ago, after a two-week disappearance and then a press conference showing him struggling to catch his breath—now his best buddy, former President Donald Trump, kinda threw him under the bus.
Tuesday, Trump gave an interview to One America News, during which he was asked about his comments in another interview touting the value of COVID-19 vaccines. Trump doubled down.
“Well, I’ve taken it,” said Trump plainly. “I’ve had the booster. Many politicians—I watched a couple of politicians be interviewed and one of the questions was, ‘Did you get the booster?’ Because they had the vaccine, and they’re answering like—in other words, the answer is ‘yes’ but they don’t want to say it. Because they’re gutless. You gotta say it, whether you had it or not. Say it. But the fact is that I think the vaccines saved tens of millions throughout the world. I’ve had absolutely no side effects.”
Uhhhh… could Trump be talking about his little racist friend DeSantis, who reportedly received the single-shot Johnson & Johnson, but has refused to say whether he has received the booster?
“I’ve done whatever I did,” he said in an interview with Fox News when asked if he’d been boosted. “The normal shot.” Whatever the fuck that means.
Last week, Politico asked DeSantis’ spokeswoman Christina Pushaw if the governor had been boosted.
"I am not privy to the governor's private medical decisions and am unable to share information about his booster status," Pushaw responded. "Governor DeSantis has consistently said that vaccination (and by extension, boosters) should be a personal choice, and anyone who has questions or concerns should consult with a health care provider."
When it comes to COVID-19, DeSantis, a potential GOP presidential candidate in 2024, runs a rocky and deadly ship. Both he and his newly appointed clueless Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, deny the validity of taking any protocols to mitigate the virus, and numbers in the state, as a result, have remained out of control. The case positivity rate is over 35%, according to COVID Act Now, making it the third-highest positivity rate, behind California and Texas.
And now, even how his beloved monoclonal antibody drugs are being distributed has come into question.
The Tampa Bay Times reported Tuesday that Florida shipped a scare new COVID-19 treatment to a private clinic in Broward County before sending it to Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital, the largest solid organ transplant center in the Southern U.S. South Florida hospitals are in desperate need of monoclonal treatments and have been forced to portion out what they do have to their most vulnerable patients.
Evusheld can provide up to six months of protection against COVID-19, according to the Food and Drug Administration, which authorized the treatment for emergency use on Dec. 8.
iCare Mobile Medicine received more Evusheld in the state’s first shipment in December than any other hospital or medical provider in Florida—and no one knows why or if they do, no one is saying.
Up to this point, Florida's health department has refused to explain the state’s prioritization to any media outlet.