News Service of Florida

A report by state economists pointed to a forecast last month that cigarette sales would decline by 2.5 percent annually over the next decade.

The state has had more than 66,000 new cases in each of the past 10 weeks — and more than 71,000 new cases in eight of the weeks.

Florida has topped 60,000 new cases in nine straight weeks and has topped 70,000 in six of the weeks, according to the state report issued Friday.

Lawyers in Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office filed a 28-page response at the 1st District Court of Appeal, a day after abortion clinics and a physician asked the court to put the law on hold.

The 156 oysters were sampled from Biscayne Bay — which showed the highest number — along with Tampa Bay and Marco Island.

The appeal keeps the law in effect - for now. The appeal was expected following Judge John Cooper's ruling, in which he said the law violated the state constitution's privacy protections.

The settlement resolves allegations that MorseLife facilitated the vaccination of board members and donors with doses intended for residents and staff members, according to the Justice Department.

The bill, in part, will give the Office of Insurance Regulation more authority over pharmacy benefit managers.

The News Service of Florida incorrectly reported that Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill (HB 105) that would allow cities and counties to restrict smoking at beaches and parks that they own. The brief was based on information posted on the Florida Senate website. The bill remained pending before DeSantis as of midday Tuesday.

The numbers of new cases reported Friday were the highest totals during the past 10 weeks. Meantime, more than 75,000 Floridians have died from the virus since the pandemic started.