Update.
Even more errors were discovered:
MORE ERRORS: @HealthyFla's report on percentage of positive cases also showed the Orlando Veteran’s Medical Center had a #COVID19 positivity rate of 76%. A spokesperson for the VA tells #FOX35 their positivity rate is actually 6%. @fox35orlando https://t.co/yMDfTfobYr
— Amy Kaufeldt (@Fox35Amy) July 14, 2020
And Orlando Health has no idea what happened:
UPDATE: @orlandohealth says they do not know how their positivity rate number appeared wrong on the @HealthyFla website. Orlando Health's rate for positive test results is 9.4%. #FOX35 @fox35orlando https://t.co/ckqrf9IS67
— Amy Kaufeldt (@Fox35Amy) July 14, 2020
We still don’t have a definitive answer yet, but here’s the latest from the Flordia Dept. of Health:
Updated:"Florida Department of Health noticed that some smaller, private labs weren’t reporting negative test result data to the state..[&]..immediately began working with those labs to ensure that all results were being reported in order 2 provide comprehensive &transparent data https://t.co/gPmbR9KOjR pic.twitter.com/1SbNInhdFF
— Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) July 14, 2020
Original post.
An investigation by Fox 35 in Orlando discovered major errors in Florida’s daily report on COVID-19 tests with many clinics around the state reporting 100% or near-100% positivity:
ERRORS FOUND: Florida's positivity rate is skewed. #FOX35 went through #COVID19 test reports & found many clinics reporting 100% positivity. @orlandohealth admits their number is wrong, saying it shows 98% positive, but it's actually 9.4%. @fox35orlando https://t.co/NgFuXjw5OS
— Amy Kaufeldt (@Fox35Amy) July 14, 2020
It’s not yet clear what happened, but the only clinic to respond back to Fox 35 — Orlando Health — reported that it’s 98% positivity rate is really 9.4%:
How could that be? FOX 35 News investigated these astronomical numbers, contacting every location mentioned. Orlando Health, the only to answer our question, confirmed errors in the report. Its positivity rate is in fact only 9.4 percent, not 98 percent as in the report.
FOX 35 News has yet to hear from the other labs or the Florida Department of Health to explain how the error could have been made on an official report.
The state, so far, is not responding to reporters:
I’ve called one South Florida lab and DOH and gotten no response about this for days.
Might be good for some more transparency, @helenaguirrefer https://t.co/LuW64khP8u
— Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) July 14, 2020
WTF is going on, Florida?
I'm not a math guy but mistaking 9.4 for 98 is QUITE that math error. https://t.co/HaVf4HWPtv pic.twitter.com/c6BTMm33To
— Matt Whitlock (@mattdizwhitlock) July 14, 2020
We’re in the middle of a pandemic and trying to decide if it’s safe for schools to open and the data is suspect?
What is right? What is wrong? https://t.co/qGzCDbd78Q pic.twitter.com/edVu3SqZ9n
— Paul Gallant (@GallantSays) July 14, 2020
So, what are the real results?
Impossible to believe these are "errors". No biggie, though, only playing with people's lives here. https://t.co/fNtDND38QY
— Ryan Brown (@RyanBrownWJOX) July 14, 2020
Again, it’s not clear what’s going on and one explanation flying around is that these clinics “either tested few people or because they’re… hospitals which are re-testing patients”:
So you filtered the "testing by laboratory" table that ends on page 48 of https://t.co/QPfA9DuN6X, right?
They likely reported 100% positive because they either tested few people or because they're… hospitals which are re-testing patients. Lab results aren't dated. pic.twitter.com/ias7Z5p2tJ
— Olivier Lacan (@olivierlacan) July 12, 2020
We’ll keep you posted:
Is it possible that what you calculate as 34% of today's cases cannot actually be compared (as a percentage) to today's cases because these lab results added aren't necessarily from today.
In other words, it's not that simple, even if it appears problematic.
— Olivier Lacan (@olivierlacan) July 12, 2020
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Editor’s note: We’ve added an additional tweet to this post.
