Florida Sen. Rick Scott defended Gov. Ron DeSantis’ decision not to impose further sweeping shutdowns in Florida as the state’s case count continues to surge.
Scott appeared on Fox & Friends Thursday, supporting the governor’s Tuesday announcement that Florida is “not going back” on its reopening and to call on local, state and federal governments not to issue further shutdowns.
“I think we ought to stop mandating things and start just giving people good information,” Scott said. The former Florida governor added, “That’s what I did when I had hurricanes. People are smart. Give them good information. Tell them where there’s the spread of the virus—places that are at risk. If you tell me a restaurant has had patients or employees with coronavirus, I’d probably avoid it for a while.”
“So, give us information,” he said. “You don’t have to tell me to wear a mask. You don’t have to tell me to shut things down. Give me more information.”
But businesses technically do not have to disclose any coronavirus or COVID-19 exposure.
"When it comes to whether to publicly disclose the information, the biggest factor is whether the employee was customer facing, like a hostess or server, or if they largely spent their time behind the scenes," Tampa attorney Robert Shimberg recently told the Tampa Bay Business Journal. "Our advice to businesses is if there’s a customer-facing employee or the employee would be in the same restroom as the public, or otherwise in contact with the public, you would notify the public."
Along with the interview Thursday, Fox also published an op-ed from Scott advising against any government-mandated lockdowns to prevent the spread of the virus. He instead insisted government officials “trust the American people and value their right to make their own decisions and be responsible for their own outcomes.”
“People ignoring these warnings are being selfish – they’re not only putting their own health at risk, but also the health and well-being of their families, friends and coworkers,” his op-ed reads.
Gov. DeSantis’s announcement Tuesday was met with opposition from Florida Democrats who expressed concerns that a push for wearing masks in public was being seen as a matter of politics rather than public safety.We welcome readers to submit letters regarding articles and content in Orlando Weekly. Letters should be a minimum of 150 words, refer to content that has appeared on Orlando Weekly, and must include the writer's full name, address, and phone number for verification purposes. No attachments will be considered. Writers of letters selected for publication will be notified via email. Letters may be edited and shortened for space.
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