With the omicron variant looming, the mayor of Miami-Dade County has reinstated an emergency order requiring hospitals to report the numbers of COVID-19 cases treated each day and the availability of hospital beds.
Last month, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava lifted an emergency order issued during the summer as the delta surge swept across the region.
The county's positivity rate had dropped to about 1% last month. But it currently stands at 7% with new numbers expected to be released Friday.
The mayor's order also requires hospitals to report the number of vaccinations performed, how many patients are being treated in intensive care units and the number of ventilators available.
Few omicron cases have been reported in Florida, but the county’s communications director, Rachel Johnson, said regular COVID tests of the county’s wastewater system have detected the new variant.
Click the link to read more of this article from WLRN coverage partner the Miami Herald.
