The state previously had the information under embargo, meaning it was not released to the public. In April, The Tampa Bay Times reported that COVID-19 deaths reported by medical examiners and in the health department’s official count were different, diverging by up to 10 percent.
Florida recently embarked on efforts to reopen the state and faces scrutiny over the integrity of its data.
“I think they’ve realized it’s public record. You can’t suddenly tell the medical examiners what we’re doing all along is exempt because it contains confidential death information,” said Stephen Nelson, MD, chairman of the Florida medical examiners commission.
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