Joe.My.God. LGBT News
Fort Myers’ PBS affiliate reports:
After winning a decisive appellate court battle that required the Florida Department of Health to turn over COVID-19 data withheld from the public during the height of the pandemic, the legal battle over the records has ended with a settlement agreement.
A media release from the Florida Center for Government Accountability said the group and former Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith (D-House District 49) agreed to a settlement that requires the Department to publish detailed COVID-19 data on its website and pay $152,250 in legal fees to attorneys representing FLCGA and Rep. Smith.
Access to COVID-19 data was restricted after Governor DeSantis decided to open Florida for business in June 2021 just as the Delta variant spread throughout the state. During the information blackout, thousands of Floridians died from COVID-19 in the summer and early fall of 2021.
Read the full article. Smith, who is openly gay, was unseated last year and is now running for the Florida Senate.
Former State Rep. @CarlosGSmith wins lawsuit against @GovRonDeSantis administration over withheld COVID-19 data. Court orders state @HealthyFla to post data online and pay legal costs of $152,250 for the two-year battle.
— Jeffrey Schweers 🐊 (@jeffschweers) October 9, 2023
JUST IN: After a 2-year battle, the DeSantis administration has agreed to settle my public records lawsuit against them for illegally hiding COVID health data while the Delta variant ripped thru Florida killing 23,000 people.
We persisted. We prevailed. We held them accountable. pic.twitter.com/1GQP4KeO0A
— Carlos Guillermo Smith (@CarlosGSmith) October 9, 2023