AdventHealth says 220 patients are hospitalized with COVID-19 in central Florida, the lowest number since last summer. The hospital system continues to urge residents to get vaccinated as a new variant surges in other parts of the world.
The Delta variant originated in India and is currently causing an uptick in cases, hospitalizations and deaths in Europe.
AdventHealth’s Dr. Vincent Hsu says it’s possible the variant could spread with summer travel and cause a surge in central Florida.
“What happens in the world, affects what happens in the US. People are going to want to travel internationally again. And so there’s always the potential for a variant to be transmitted where then it affects some significant population in the US. And we don't want that to happen.”
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Hsu says it’s crucial that anyone traveling to these countries this summer is fully vaccinated to stop the spread of the variant back home in Orlando.
“There is always that risk. So we have to be careful with travel and again, the most important thing is to really ensure that a bigger population is vaccinated.”
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Hsu says it’s safe for vaccinated people to resume their normal holiday activities this summer without face masks, including time by the pool.
