Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will be battling the coronavirus pandemic without the aid of his current surgeon general.
"Surgeon General Scott Rivkees, the state's top medical official, is exiting Gov. Ron DeSantis' administration in September," Florida Politics reported and WFLA-TV confirmed. "Rivkees, whose time in government has been marked by his absence from public view throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, will exit the administration when his contract expires Sept. 20. The news comes as Florida continues trudging through the pandemic with peak cases and hospitalizations on account of the delta variant,."
Following the news breaking, DeSantis Press Secretary Christina Pushaw issued a statement.
"We thank Dr. Rivkees for his meaningful work during the most challenging pandemic of our lifetime. We appreciate his service to the people of Florida and wish him the best in his future endeavors," the administration said.
Ana Ceballos, a state government reporter for the Miami Herald, remembered one of the last times Dr. Rivkees was seen with DeSantis.
"Floridians will be keeping their distance and wearing face masks for up to a year until a COVID-19 vaccine exists, Florida Surgeon General Scott Rivkees said Monday before being whisked away by the governor's spokeswoman," the Tampa Bay Times reported in April of 2020. "The surgeon general's comments appear to conflict with what Gov. Ron DeSantis and his political ally, President Donald Trump, have said about returning to pre-coronavirus life."
BREAKING: Florida reported 901 previously unreported #COVID19-related deaths today, the highest number of the pandemic. That pushed the 7-day average of deaths to a new record high. Here are the latest statistics from @HealthyFla and @CDCgov. https://t.co/v8qBw4lQ7g
— South Florida Sun Sentinel (@SunSentinel) August 26, 2021
