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Tests popular on Christmas as Florida hits new virus record

A medical assistant administers a COVID-19 test last week in Los Angeles. COVID-19 cases are on the rise as the highly transmissible delta variant has become the dominant strain in the United States.
A medical assistant administers a COVID-19 test last week in Los Angeles. COVID-19 cases are on the rise as the highly transmissible delta variant has become the dominant strain in the United States.

Florida hit a new record in the pandemic for the second day in a row as the state reported 32,850 daily new cases on Christmas Day.

Only a day earlier, with 31,758 new daily cases reported, Florida broke its previous record of more than 27,000 cases set in August during the height of the delta wave in Florida.

The current surge is being driven by the spreading of the highly contagious omicron variant. The swelling number of virus cases created demand for COVID-19 tests, even on Christmas Day, when tests were almost as popular as eating a ham or drinking egg-nog-like coquito, for some.

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