To ensure we are equipping our readers with all the information they need, we will continue to report on all travel, safety, and COVID-related news that could impact a Disney Parks visit.
The Omicron variant has impacted many things in Florida lately as it causes COVID-19 cases to increase, like travel, tourism, and certain requirements.
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Now, there are new numbers in Florida that shows cases are continuing to surge.
A recent tweet from WFTV’s Rusty McCranie says that according to Dr. Tim Hendrix of Advent Health, the positivity rate of COVID-19 testing yesterday in Orange County, Florida was 45%. The positivity rate across all of Central Florida is 39%. For comparison, the positivity rate was around 5% two weeks ago.
Dr. Tim Hendrix of Advent Health tells us the positivity rate of Covid testing yesterday in Orange County was 45%. It's 39% across all of Central Florida. The positivity rate was around 5% two weeks ago.
— Rusty McCranie (@RMcCranieWFTV) December 28, 2021
Orange County is where most of Walt Disney World is located in Florida. The county was listed as a COVID-19 “hotspot” recently, indicating that it has reached an amount of disease activity to be considered a high burden.
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Last Friday, Florida as a whole broke a record for the most cases in a single day since the start of a pandemic with 31,758 new COVID-19 cases.
©Orlando International Airport
Last week, the Florida Department of Health reported that the statewide new-case positivity rate rose to 13.8%. The week before Christmas had a 5.3% new-case positivity rate, and the week before that, the rate was even lower at 2.6%.
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The holiday season could be contributing to the increase in numbers, with The Orlando Sentinel saying previously that this surge in cases was due to people’s rush to get tested ahead of the holidays. They also reported that the Omicron variant is the dominant strain among newly reported cases.
Disney’s health and safety policies continue to change
The Omicron variant has been found in the wastewater of Orange County, Florida as well. It has also brought about new travel restrictions and was expected to impact international tourism in Florida. Stay tuned to DFB for more COVID-19 updates as they pertain to Disney World.
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With Omicron, positive rates are actually pretty meaningless. The only significant rates are hospitalizations and deaths. Data from South Africa and even here in the US indicate that while Omicron is 70% more transmissible than Delta, infection with Omicron results in a very mile case, not unlike a common cold, in the majority of people. As we continue to watch Omicron, hospitalization and death rates statistics remain extremely important. As a final word from me, please, if you are not vaccinated, please get the jab. I am a physician (MD) and have had 2 jabs and a booster.
Sadly more scare tactics. Now we watch to see how many people will buy into it.
I remind you, over 460,000 people in the U.S. alone have died from Covid…they bought into it.