Pandemic Milestone: Florida Surpasses 2 Million Coronavirus Cases

FLORIDA — Florida has hit a grim coronavirus pandemic milestone: surpassing the 2 million case mark just over one year since the virus began to spread in the Sunshine State.

More than 5,000 new COVID-19 cases were reported Saturday and nearly 4,000 reported Sunday, according to the Florida Department of Health’s coronavirus dashboard. This brought the total number of coronavirus cases reported in Florida since the start of the pandemic to 2,008,349 as of Sunday afternoon.

Florida has the third-highest number of cases in the United States and is only the third state to surpass 2 million cases, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

As of Sunday, California has reported more than 3.5 million cases over the past year, while Texas has seen more than 2.7 million cases. There have been nearly 30 million total coronavirus cases in the U.S. during this time, the CDC said.

Since the start of the pandemic, there have been more than 33,000 coronavirus deaths in Florida. Sixty-four new deaths were reported statewide Saturday and another 32 on Sunday.

Florida hit this 2 million case milestone as coronavirus vaccination continues to ramp up in the state.

Nearly 5 million people have been vaccinated as of Sunday morning, according to Florida’s COVID-19 vaccine summary. This includes more than 2.7 million people who have completed their vaccination series.

Starting Monday, the vaccine will be available to part-time and full-time Florida residents who are 50 and older, as Gov. Ron DeSantis continues to expand eligibility for vaccination.