California, which has certain mask mandates in place, has a daily average of Chinese coronavirus cases four times that of Florida’s, recent data shows.
Data last updated Tuesday shows California reporting a daily average of cases of 6,353, according to the New York Times’ coronavirus case map and tracker. That results in an average of 16 cases per 100,000. Overall, it reflects a 61 percent case increase in the last 14 days.
Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at Asian Health Services in Oakland, Calif., Wednesday, Oct. 27, 2021. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Meanwhile, Florida — the red state the establishment media battered throughout the coronavirus pandemic for refusing to implement stringent mandates — is reporting far less.
As of Tuesday, Florida reported a daily case average of 1,506, or seven per capita — a decrease of 20 percent in the last two weeks. In terms of the daily average cases, California is reporting four times more than the Sunshine State.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis arrives to speak during a press conference at the Shul of Bal Harbour on June 14, 2021 in Surfside, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
This comes despite the fact that California has certain mask mandates in place. According to the state’s website, individuals are required to wear a mask on public transit, healthcare settings, adult and senior care facilities, schools, correctional facilities and detention centers, and homeless and emergency shelters. Masks are “required” for unvaccinated people and “recommended” for everyone in indoor places including retail, restaurants, theaters, family entertainment centers, meetings, and state and local government offices “that serve the public.”
Exemptions are limited to those with certain disabilities and health conditions and those under the age of two. That particular guidance has been in place since July 28.
Florida, meanwhile, has never had a mask mandate in place, even at the peak of the pandemic.
During a press conference in The Villages in August, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) reiterated his stance that masks “should not be mandated.”
“No government entity should force you to do that. That is your choice. If that’s something you believe provides you protection, no one is going to say anything to you. But that should not, absolutely not be mandated,” DeSantis said.
“I will say that from a scientific perspective, you have, even some of these experts now are acknowledging, with an aerosolized virus, a piece of cloth is not going to stop the aerosols,” he added.
