Central Florida News Once again, a summer wave of COVID-19 is spiking across the country and in Florida.
According to the Department of Health, Orange County reported the third-highest case totals in the state at the end of July, just before kids returned to the classroom.
“We’ve seen generally two COVID bumps during the year. We usually get our winter bump, which tends to be a little bit larger than what we see as the summer bump, and so far, that’s what we’re seeing right now,” said Cindy Prins, an epidemiologist from the University of Central Florida.
What is different is the level of those with updated COVID vaccines, which is low. State data show that 3,200 kids 5-11 years of age received either a vaccine or a booster so far this year. Those numbers are on track to be less than years before: 19,600 in 2024 and 37,700 in 2023, and 289,000 in 2022.
With kids back in the classroom this week, and college kids returning to universities next week, it’s hard to predict if the numbers will continue to increase, Prins said.