A.G. Gancarski
Yet another member of the Jacksonville City Council has been hospitalized with COVID-19.
Ju’Coby Pittman is in the ICU at Baptist Medical Center, according to multiple sources.
Pittman, the third member of the 19-person City Council to contract the novel coronavirus and the first this year, was appointed to fill the unexpired term of former Jacksonville City Councilman Reggie Brown by Gov. Rick Scott in 2018. She was elected in her own right a year later.
Last year, current Council President Sam Newby and former Councilman and Council President Scott Wilson had the virus. They both recovered.
Newby had the worst of the two cases. He was hospitalized last Spring and his recovery was no certainty.
In a statement Tuesday morning, Newby offered fervent wishes for healing.
“My thoughts and prayers are with Council Member Ju’Coby Pittman and her family during this time of illness. I KNOW God to be a healer and I trust God will heal my dear colleague completely. We have so much more work to do! God is Able!”
Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry also offered prayers and hopes that Pittman would heal.
“Thoughts and prayers tonight for my dear friend and colleague, Ju’Coby Pittman. Thinking of you and praying for your recovery,” Curry tweeted.
Pittman’s case continues issues the City Council has had with virus mitigation.
In addition to Council members being infected during the course of the pandemic, staffers also battled the virus.
The latest coronavirus case for a Council member comes as Duval County and Northeast Florida deal with an uptick in cases generally.
The most recent weekly tallies from Florida’s Department of Health, released last week, show the region well ahead of the rest of the state in case counts and incidence going into the Fourth of July Weekend.
From June 25 to July 1, Duval County reported 1,420 cases, with an 11.1% positive test rate. That is the highest proportion of positive tests of any major metropolitan area in the state.
Duval, where 47% of residents have been vaccinated, and an additional 16.5% have had the virus, is not alone among Northeast Florida counties facing rates of positive tests far higher than the 5.2% state average.
In Northeast Florida, Baker, Clay, Columbia, Nassau, and St. Johns are also well above the state average in positive test rates, and below state and national averages in vaccinated population.
10 comments
Frankie M.
July 5, 2021 at 7:56 pm
‘God brought me from the patient to the presidency.”
Is Lenny Curry God? I thought Bob Ross had that position filled.
Did she catch the coco from Newby?
Franklin Bynes
July 5, 2021 at 11:27 pm
My prayers are with this Council Woman.
The elephant in the room — why isn’t she vaccinated? How can she promote vaccines and not be vaccinated? Why has she been around other Council Members?
Eric
July 6, 2021 at 6:19 am
If she was vaccinated, they would likely try to conceal that information, as they are forcing vaccinations on workers at this point. If she had been vaccinated, this would be real world proof, that the efficiency of vaccines are actually low. Florida has already shown us that true numbers can be fudged.
Susan
July 6, 2021 at 11:18 am
They need to let us know if it’s a rare breakthrough case or if she wasn’t vaccinated.
I’m vaccinated and been hanging out with other vaccinated people. Is my risk low?
I wear a mask when going into a public building but I see other people that aren’t. I have no idea if they are vaccinated. How risky is it for me? I have some of the criteria to have a bad reaction if the vaccine doesn’t work and I get infected with the Delta or other variant of the coronavirus
Eric
July 6, 2021 at 6:15 am
It is very important to know if the councilwoman was vaccinated. It would be helpful in understanding the real world efficacy of the vaccines, as they are being forced on workers at this point.
Frankie M.
July 7, 2021 at 1:53 pm
Sounds like she was not vaccinated from what I heard on local public radio this morning but it’s a personal decision so go do what you like.
Sonja Fitch
July 6, 2021 at 7:06 am
Actually I do not give a rats ass if any politician is vaccinated! The facts and the science and opportunity to know the truth are available now for All. But the questions and answers requested in these posts are just more divisive political bs. Covid does not care about your political persuasions. Our elected leaders are to guide and inform ALL !
Elsa is headed to Jacksonville. Looting Lenny has chosen to give a news conference only on Fox News. That is again political partisan bs. Elected officials shall represent All. Elected officials shall inform All.
?
July 6, 2021 at 8:27 am
Was she vaccinated ?
Frankie M.
July 6, 2021 at 10:58 am
If any group of people should be skeptical about getting the vaccine it would be black people. Tuskegee study anyone? The U.S. government has been more deceitful to Black Americans than just about any other group save Native Americans. Everybody else doesn’t have an excuse other than….reasons.
Meshelle Clark
July 8, 2021 at 3:02 pm
God Bless American
Comments are closed.