Gov. DeSantis declares State of Emergency for Florida amidst coronavirus efforts

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FILE: Ron DeSantis announcement

Governor Ron DeSantis is holding a news conference at the state capitol discussing the latest information on the coronavirus (COVID-19).

At the conference, the governor declared a State of Emergency in Florida.

He is asking for $25 million for the Department of Health. If needed, it would get things like medical supplies and protective gear.

DeSantis also discussed how they’re working with hospitals to make sure they have the capacity if the virus were to get bigger and how to best protect everyone in Florida.

All hospitals have to have plans for something like this. At the same time, the best-laid plans can go out the window. This is something we would be using emergency resources for, potentially having a field hospital. The vast majority of people will not require hospitalizations. Is there a way we can assist for people to be tested, isolated and not take up all of those resources?

We also learned the Food and Drug Administration approved two more labs to test for COVID-19 on top of three labs in Jacksonville, Miami and Tampa.

Officials say there is no shortage of testing abilities for the virus in Florida.

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