Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said the county may explore the possibility of mandating masks for all people at certain types of businesses — like local bars and nightclubs — to respond to the upward trend in COVID-19 cases.
During a Monday press conference, Demings said he spoke with health care leaders to discuss a possible plan of action which included looking into mandating masks where contact tracing has indicated a spike in coronavirus cases.
Demings said while the COVID-19 case numbers are increasing, the age demographic is dropping.
Demings said the county will continue to stress the importance of face masks and social distancing to residents, and said contact tracing will also be expanded.
Dr. Raul Pino, health officer for the Florida Department of Health, said Sunday marked the highest one-day increase of positive COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began in March.
In Orange County, 186 confirmed positive COVID-19 cases were reported on Sunday. Pino said Saturday’s 167 positive COVID-19 test results previously set the record high in a single day in Orange County.
Pino emphasized while positive results are rising — which he said is partially due to increased testing — 38% of positive cases over the past two weeks have been individuals who are between the ages of 20 and 29.
Orange County’s most recent data shows 3,282 confirmed positive COVID-19 cases, according to the Florida Department of Health.
Pino said in just the last two weeks, the county has had 1,197 positive cases.
The Department of Health’s dashboard shows 77,326 total COVID-19 cases in Florida, with 75,388 positive COVID-19 cases in Florida residents.
The county bordering UCF has also documented an upward trend in positive cases. Seminole County’s most recent data shows 790 confirmed positive COVID-19 cases, according to the Florida Department of Health.
Orange County Health Services is offering free testing at Barnett Park this week — appointments can be made at Orange County’s website. For a list of various testing options, visit the county’s COVID-19 website.
This is a developing story. Check back with Knight News for updates.
