Florida's coronavirus response is a national embarrassment: medical professor

Writing in the Washington Post this Tuesday, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine professor Erin N. Marcus gave her thoughts on what she sees to be the grim outlook for Florida's coronavirus situation, first mentioning the various examples of people ignoring social distancing rules and improperly wearing masks around her town -- all things she says contributed to Miami being the virus' epicenter.

"This is what happens when your state becomes a national embarrassment. And the reason is clear: We have suffered from failures of political leadership at every level," she writes.

"Florida’s challenges are similar to those that New York and other northern states faced months ago," Marcus continues. "But while leaders in those states took aggressive action and modeled good behavior, our state has been significantly more laissez-faire and chaotic. Bars and restaurants closed for indoor service in March but reopened in June; now, Miami-Dade County’s mayor has shut them down again. Opening business might have worked if our state and local officials had enforced the correct wearing of appropriate masks, or modeled good mask-wearing behavior themselves, or provided businesses with instructions on maintaining proper ventilation. But they didn’t."

While leadership could be working overtime to get a handle on the outbreak, Marcus doesn't see a coherent effort coming together anytime soon. "...this is Florida, a state with a well-established history of being anything but rational."

Read the full op-ed over at The Washington Post.