Michelle Corum

Florida hit a grim new record, Sunday, as state health officials reported 15,300 new cases of COVID-19, which shatters the national record for the highest number of new confirmed cases of the virus reported in a single day. California held the previous record with 11,694 cases of the virus reported four days prior, and before that New York set the record with 11,571 cases reported April 15th.Sunday marked the third consecutive day of single-day increases of at least 10,000 cases of the virus and the 19th consecutive day of at least 5,000 new cases. Florida’s total caseload now stands 269,811 cases.The Florida Department of Health also reported 45 new coronavirus-related deaths, July 12, increasing the statewide death toll to 4,242 fatalities. Last week, Florida reported more coronavirus-related deaths than during any previous seven-day period since the pandemic began with an average of 71 deaths per day.