Lee County’s vaccination site is getting a new, indoor location.

Officials from the Florida Department of Health – Lee and Lee County Government recently announced the COVID-19 vaccination site is to be relocated to the former Sears building at the Edison Mall. Lee County Commissioners this week announced the first shots administered at the new location are set to take place April 14.

“FDOH-Lee selected a fully climate-controlled location due to increasing seasonal temperatures and humidity, as well as soon-to-come summer thunderstorms,” said officials in a release. “The new site is centrally located along public transportation routes, is about 5 miles from Interstate 75 and offers ample parking. It is easily accessed and could accommodate expanded evening and weekend hours of operation.”

The site will vaccinate eligible individuals registered through the State of Florida website, https://myvaccine.fl.gov/#/, or by phone at 866-200-3468. Gov. Ron DeSantis recently expanded eligibility to people age 40 and older and for all individuals 18-plus effective Monday, April 5.

Those with existing appointments at the RSW site are not affected by the change.

Officials said individuals who received their first dose at RSW between March 18 and Tuesday, March 30, will receive a call in the coming weeks from the state’s vendor, Tidal Basin, to schedule their second-dose appointments at the indoor site.

More information can be found at www.leegov.com/vaccine. The new site at the Edison Mall is at 4125 Cleveland Ave. in Fort Myers.

By the Numbers

As of Thursday afternoon, there are 2,104,686 total cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Florida, an increase of 7,939 since FDOH’s last update Wednesday.

Test results reported to the Department of Health on Wednesday, April 7 resulted in a 6.73% positivity rate among 141,380 tests.

The state saw its highest daily percentage of positive patients on Dec. 29 when 22.75% percent of tests reported were positive among 62,303 tests.

The average positivity rate in new cases over the last week is 6.77%.

Of those testing positive, 86,499 Florida residents have been hospitalized at some point during their illness according to the state.

The death toll increased by 86 from Wednesday’s report, bringing the total number of deaths, both resident and non-resident, to 34,562.

According to the state, hospitalizations in Lee County make up 3% of all positive cases, and 4% of all positive cases statewide in Florida. Deaths statewide and in Lee County stand at 2% of positive cases.

On Dec. 27, 974 people were given the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine throughout the state according to FDOH. The total number of persons vaccinated as of Thursday throughout Florida was 6,786,461 with 257,151 being in Lee County. According to the state, 4,053,597 individuals have had their vaccine series completed, 148,114 of those being in Lee County.

In Lee County, 64,206 individuals (+249) have tested positive as of Thursday’s update.

There have been 935 deaths in Lee County — an increase of three from Wednesday’s report.

As of Thursday afternoon, Lee Health had 93 COVID-19 patients isolated in system inpatient hospitals, including nine new admissions and 16 discharges since Wednesday.

On Wednesday, Lee Health had a 13.2% 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.

A total of 5,614 COVID-19 patients have been discharged from Lee Health facilities since the beginning of the pandemic.

Census as of Thursday afternoon was at 94% of staffed operational bed capacity, with 6.7% 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 Thursday, 67% of ventilators and 8% of ICU rooms are available for use across Lee Health facilities.

As of Thursday, there were 12 COVID-19 patients on ventilators and 19 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.

–Connect with this reporter on Twitter: @haddad_cj