Healthcare

Florida Deputy Secretary of Health rails agains CDC for botching COVID data

Published

2 years ago

August 12, 2021

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By Jenny Goldsberry

After the Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported inaccurate data for COVID-19 cases in Florida, Deputy Secretary of Health Shamarial Roberson blasted them on Fox News Thursday.

First, the CDC reported 28,317 cases of COVID-19 Sunday. But the actual number that day was 15,319. Then on Saturday Florida saw over 19,000 cases and 21,500 cases Friday.

“It is very important that data is accurate in the state of Florida. The people of Florida deserve it,” Roberson said. “We’ve been putting out accurate data since the beginning of the pandemic.”

The daily case counts for Florida currently posted on the CDC COVID Tracker are incorrect. The current listing states 28,317.

The accurate data are as follows:

Friday, August 6: 21,500
Saturday August 7: 19,567
Sunday, August 8: 15,319

The 3 day average: 18,795
— Florida Dept. Health (@HealthyFla) August 10, 2021

“I really don’t have a good understanding as to what happened to cause that data display error,” Roberson admitted. However to prevent it from happening in the future, they are not also reporting historical data to the CDC so they can look back at it to ensure accuracy.

“We are committed in Florida to data accuracy,” Roberson said. She does recommend that people in Florida follow their county guidelines to stay safe.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism.

China

FDA will work with China to import cancer drugs due to U.S. shortages

Published

2 days ago

June 7, 2023

Sara Carter Staff

Earlier this week the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it will be working to import chemotherapy drugs from, of all places, China. The drug, called Cisplatin, is to help “ramp up supply amidst rampant drug shortages in the U.S.” reports Foreign Desk News.

Foreign Desk News writes:

Cisplatin comes from drugmaker Qilu Pharmaceutical, which is marketed and produced in China but has not been approved by the FDA. According to a May 24 letter, Qilu will work with the Canadian-based drug company Apotex to import and distribute the medication, which will come in 50-milligram vials with Chinese labels.

“The FDA is responding to yet another generic drug shortage,” said Edmund F. Haislmaier, an expert in healthcare policy and markets at The Heritage Foundation. “The underlying cause of those shortages is that generic drugs have become low-margin commodity products,” he added.

Last week on Twitter, FDA commissioner Dr. Robert Califf said the partnership with Qilu Pharmaceutical is temporary but will provide patients with a potentially life-extending drug.

“The public should rest assured that we will continue all efforts within our authority to help the industry that manufactures and distributes these drugs meet all patient needs for the oncology drugs impacted by shortages,” Califf said.

The public should rest assured that we will continue all efforts within our authority to help the industry that manufactures and distributes these drugs meet all patient needs for the oncology drugs impacted by shortages. https://t.co/8XvOuJzSL4

— Dr. Robert M. Califf (@DrCaliff_FDA) June 3, 2023

Foreign Desk News adds:

The latest move by the FDA is sure to spark concern and debate in Congress, as lawmakers in the House and Senate have called on the Biden administration to de-couple the U.S. economy from the Chinese markets, given Beijing’s aggressive push to expand in the South-China Sea and eventually take over the island state of Taiwan. China has also spread illegal and dangerous synthetic opioids and fentanyl drugs across the U.S. southern border, resulting in the devastating deaths of many Americans.