Florida used to have an ArcGIS COVID-19 tracking page. It started out useful; then their data entry specialist decided she was a professional epidemiologist, and pumped it full of BS. You’ve probably heard the story: convicted criminal, crazy person, all fake whistleblowy and whiny, had a warrant served on her after she allegedly hacked state systems… At one point, I heard she’d locked out everyone else from the ArcGIS page, assumed sole control, and changed the data. I think that was after they’d canned her ass.
Fun stuff. Never heard if the state ever got its ArcGIS page back. Maybe that’s what caused my next bit of trouble.
At the end of it all, I can no longer find Florida’s COVID daily case numbers, by date of onset/diagnosis/test administered. I’m persistent, so I scoured the Florida COVID page. Not there, so I found their email address for more specific data requests and … requested.
They replied by telling me to check the same damned page again, and if that didn’t work to use the contact at yet another page.
That page showed zilch about COVID reporting, but it had a search bar. That pulled up links to the same pages I’d already gone over, plus a report even less informative. But there’s another email address to request more specific data.
Wait, I’ve seen this before…
I emailed them. And got a reply telling me to check the same goddamned useless pages. And if that doesn’t work to make a public records request to an email address in yet another DPH office.
No response yet, but I have a sneaking suspicion I know what it will be. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Funny thing. You know what it took to get the equivalent data from Georgia?
Click here, scroll down to the “COVID-19 Over Time” graph, click “date of onset. Done.
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