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The Point, Dec. 7, 2020: Florida's Coronavirus Death Total Is Approaching 20,000

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Today's top Florida stories

• WUSF: Florida Sees A Dip In Coronavirus Cases, But Nearly 100 Daily Deaths. "After a three-day stretch of more than 10,000 positive coronavirus cases, Florida saw a dip in the number of cases on Sunday. ... The state also reported 96 new deaths related to coronavirus on Sunday, bringing the statewide total to 19,423."

• WUFT News: UF Faculty, Student Organizations Protest Against Spring Reopening During Board of Trustees Meeting. "Coronavirus was not on its official agenda, but protesters ensured that board members continued to hear disagreement with the university’s decision to offer a majority of classes in person. The meeting occurred at the end of the week in which UF surpassed Clemson University for the most cumulative COVID-19 campus cases in the nation — 5,467 at UF to 5,391 at Clemson — as of Saturday morning."

• WMFE: As Marion County COVID-19 cases climb, health official says ‘we can control how high this goes.’ "Marion County is seeing a significant increase in COVID-19 cases already this month. The county added 183 new cases on Thursday with a test positivity rate of 13 percent. And five more deaths were recorded."

• Sun Sentinel ($): These South Florida hospitals expect the COVID-19 vaccine within days. It’ll go to workers on the front lines. "Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood and Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami will be awaiting permission from the government to start using the vaccines."

• Fort Myers News-Press ($): FGCU to bill students, employees for not using COVID test kits. "Florida Gulf Coast University is offering COVID-19 test kits ahead of its monthlong winter break, but students and employees who request a kit and then fail to use it could be looking at a $194 bill in the new year."

• WCJB: Neighbor witnesses fatal shooting of a woman and infant in Northeast Gainesville. "The Gainesville Police Department is investigating the fatal shooting of a woman and her less than one year old baby."

• NPR News: Offshore Drilling Set To Begin Off Florida Alarms Environmentalists. "President Trump recently signed an order extending a ban on drilling in U.S. waters in the Atlantic. But in the Bahamas, a small company has received permission to begin doing exploratory drilling just 150 miles from the Florida coast."

• Florida Today ($): Brevard faces stiff competition from Colorado for Space Command headquarters. "A bipartisan contingent of Florida members of Congress is pushing for the Air Force to locate U.S. Space Command headquarters in Brevard County."

• Tampa Bay Times ($): What’s next for climate change in Florida Legislature? "Surveys show most Floridians  accept the realities of climate change and worry about the impacts. A shift in the electorate, advocates say, has led to a gradual thaw on conversations about the problem in Tallahassee."

• Bay News 9: Citrus County Student Receives Rare Scholarship, Admitted to Princeton. "Many dream, many apply but only a few get in and Xander Jenkin got in. A year ago, Xander never thought he’d read the words 'Congratulations.'"

• Florida Politics: Mixed drinks to go: Jennifer Bradley files booze delivery bill. "After the year Floridians have had, one of the state’s newest Senators thinks they might need a libation or two."


Today's sponsored message

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From NPR News

• Health: He Designed A Smartwatch App To Help Stop His Dad's Nightmares

• Health: 'This Is Marketing' Author On How To Market A Vaccine To Americans

• Health: Coronavirus FAQs: Are Playgrounds Too Risky? Do I Need A Mask For Outdoor Exercise?

• Politics: Biden Picks California Attorney General Xavier Becerra For Top Health Post

• National: Judge Orders Trump Administration To Restore DACA As It Existed Under Obama

• National: Rudy Giuliani Tests Positive For Coronavirus, Trump Says

• World: 1st Doses Of COVID-19 Vaccine To Be Administered This Week In The U.K.

About today's curator

I'm Ethan Magoc, a news editor at WUFT. Originally from Pennsylvania, I've found a home telling Florida stories. I’m part of a team searching each morning for local and state stories that are important to you; please send feedback about today's edition or ideas for stories we may have missed to emagoc@wuft.org.

Contact WUFT News by calling 352-392-6397 or emailing news @wuft.org