The Florida Department of Emergency Management on Tuesday announced that beginning today, Aug. 5, that state-supported drive-thru COVID-19 testing sites will prioritize testing for symptomatic individuals, individuals age 65 and older and children under the age of 18. This includes the testing site at CenturyLink Sports Complex in Fort Myers.

“This adjustment is consistent with CDC guidance that was issued on July 17, which no longer recommends a test-based strategy to determine when an asymptomatic individual is no longer infectious,” the release said. “While asymptomatic lanes will still be available, testing sites are working to expedite results and make testing more accessible to populations that need it most.”

All state-supported drive-thru COVID-19 testing sites will expand lanes for symptomatic individuals as well as individuals 65 and older. The priority lanes will offer self-swab tests, under the supervision of health care personnel, with results available within 72 hours. Two in Miami-Dade County will provide results in 15 minutes through rapid testing machines on site, according to FDEM.

In addition to expanding priority lanes at all state-supported testing sites, all state-supported drive-thru testing sites will begin offering COVID-19 antibody testing to assist with asymptomatic testing. Antibody testing will also be available at four walk-up COVID-19 testing sites: West Perrine Health Center in Miami-Dade County, Miramar Youth Enrichment Center in Broward County, Lincoln Park in Manatee County and FAMU Bragg Memorial Stadium in Leon County.

“This testing initiative will provide expedited results for symptomatic and vulnerable populations, enable faster data reporting, make contact tracing more effective, and enable a greater understanding of the transmission of the virus in the general population,” stated the release. “This testing initiative is in accordance with Governor DeSantis’ initiative, One Goal One Florida, which emphasizes the following simple, yet effective steps to mitigate and slow the spread of COVID-19.”

Those steps include: protecting the vulnerable, including the elderly and those with underlying medical conditions; practicing proper hygiene, including washing your hands; practicing social distancing, avoiding closed spaces and crowded places; and wearing a mask, if you are in close contact with others.

A list of all state-supported testing sites can be found at www.floridadisaster.org/covid19/testing-sites/.

CenturyLink Stadium is at 14100 Ben C Pratt/6 Mile Cypress Parkway, Fort Myers.

By the numbers:

As of 11 a.m. Tuesday, there are 497,330 cases of the new coronavirus confirmed in Florida, an increase of 5,446 since FDOH’s last update Monday morning. This follows Monday’s report of the fewest number of new cases reported by the state in a daily tally with 4,752 since late June.

More than 56,500 test results were reported to the Department of Health on Monday, Aug. 3; the fewest in more than two weeks. Of those reported tests, 10.88% tested positive. Over the last two weeks, the average positivity rate has been 11.21%.

The state saw its highly daily percentage of positive patients July 8, when 18.50% of tests reported were positive among 51,686 tests.

The death toll increased by 247 (245 Florida residents, 2 non-Florida residents) from Monday’s update, reported among Lee, Alachua, Bay, Brevard, Broward, Citrus, Clay, Collier, Columbia, Dade, Desoto, Duval, Escambia, Flagler, Gadsden, Hernando, Highlands, Hillsborough, Indian River, Lake, Levy, Marion, Martin, Monroe, Okaloosa, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Putnam, Santa Rosa, Sarasota, Seminole, St. Johns, St. Lucie, Sumter, Suwannee, Taylor, Volusia, Walton and Washington counties.

This does not mean all of the deaths occurred or were reported by local health care facilities on that day but that they were released in the state report that day after reports were processed.

A total of 3,790,202 individuals have been tested: 3,287,128 have tested negative, 5,744 tests were inconclusive and 3,280 tests are pending results. Of those testing positive, 27,952 Florida residents have been hospitalized at some point during their illness according to the state. There have been 7,526 deaths.

The age groups of Florida residents that have yielded the most positive test results are 25-34 years old (19%), followed by 35-44 (16%), 45-54 (16%) and 15-24 (15%).

The highest hospitalization rate is found in patients 65-74 (19%), 75-84 (18%) and 55-64 (18%) years old.

In Lee County, 15,799 (+75) individuals have tested positive as of 11 a.m. Tuesday; 6,431 in Fort Myers (+25), 3,595 in Cape Coral (+14), 3,155 in Lehigh Acres (+22), 1,045 in Bonita Springs (+1), 570 in North Fort Myers (+1), 343 in Estero (+6), 95 in Alva (+0), 63 on Fort Myers Beach (+0), 38 in Sanibel (+1), 30 in Bokeelia (+1), 21 in St. James City (+0), 15 in Tice (+0), 12 on Matlacha (+0), four in Buckingham (+0), three on Captiva (+0), three in Boca Grande (+0), three in Miromar Lakes (+0), two in San Carlos Park (+0), one in South Fort Myers(+0) and one in Immokalee(+0);159 cases were not identified by community.

Positive COVID-19 cases in the county have ranged from infants to a 101-year-old. Lee County saw its first two cases on March 7, when a man and a woman, each 77, tested positive. They had traveled to the Dominican Republic.

There have been 312 (+12) deaths in Lee County; 171 (+3) deaths were reported in residents or staff of long-term care facilities.

As of Tuesday, Lee Health had 196 COVID-19 patients isolated in system inpatient hospitals, including 23 new admissions on Monday.

A total of 2,039 patients who had tested positive have been discharged since the beginning of the pandemic, including 19 on Monday.

The system has submitted a total of 45,311 specimens for testing with 387 results pending.

On Monday, Lee Health had a 19.6% positivity rate on COVID-19 tests processed through Lee Health Labs. This represents Lee Health results only, not Lee County as a whole. Hospital positivity rates tend to be higher as the tests are performed on patients seeking treatment for a health issue, not the general public that includes asymptomatic individuals.

Lee Health’s mobile collection sites on Monday collected 180 specimens.

Current Census is at 85 (+5)% of staffed operational bed capacity, with 16.8 (-1)% of those being COVID-19 patients. Staffed operational capacity reflects the number of beds for which the hospital has adequate staffing, not the total number of beds within Lee Health hospitals. Overall bed capacity fluctuates hour to hour as the system discharges patients throughout the day who are ready to go home.

As of Tuesday, 60 (-2)% of ventilators and 25 (+0)% of ICU rooms are available for use across Lee Health facilities.

There are currently 33 (+3) COVID-19 patients on ventilators and 41 (-2) in the intensive care unit.

COVID-19 is a highly contagious viral disease. For most individuals, symptoms are mild. For a minority, the disease becomes a type of viral pneumonia with severe complications. Especially at risk are those who are older, those with underlying health conditions and the immune-compromised.

Officials strongly urge all members of the public who are at risk to remain at home so as to limit exposure. All others are urged to observe social distancing and to wear a mask for all public interactions.

For more detail on Florida resident cases, visit the live DOH Dashboard.

To find the most up-to-date information and guidance on COVID-19, visit the Department of Health’s dedicated COVID-19 webpage. For information and advisories from the Centers for Disease Control, visit the CDC COVID-19 website. For more information about current travel advisories issued by the U.S. Department of State, visit the travel advisory website.

For any other questions related to COVID-19 in Florida, contact the Department’s dedicated COVID-19 Call Center by calling 1-866-779-6121. The Call Center is available 24 hours per day. Inquiries may also be emailed to COVID-19@flhealth.gov.