Florida Governor Ron DeSantis promises to fight any Biden federal funds being sent to mask-mandated schools and says he 'doubts' administration sent 300 ventilators to deal with COVID surge

Ron DeSantis said he will 'fight back' against President Joe Biden if he tries to undo his COVID-related rules imposed in Florida regarding banning masks in schools.

'Obviously we believe that the parent rather than the government should ultimately be able to make that decision,' DeSantis said during a Wednesday press conference when asked about government mandating children wear masks in public schools.

'They're also talking about imposing a potential nationwide mask mandate on kindergarteners, first graders – you know, who knows – regardless of what the parents believe is in the best interest of their kids,' he said.

'If you're talking about the federal government coming in and overruling parents in our communities, you know, that would be something that we would fight back vociferously against,' the Florida governor added.

DeSantis also told ABC News Local 10 affiliate on Tuesday that is unaware of the state requesting additional ventilators and highly 'doubts' reports the White House sent hundreds to the state to help in the midst of a case surge.

'I have not heard about that, so I have to check to see if that's true or not,' DeSantis told the network.

'I would honestly doubt that that's true, but I'll look,' he added. 'We have a lot of stuff that we stockpiled over the last year and a half through the department of emergency management.'

'I have not had any requests across my desk. I haven't been notified of that.'

The ABC report claims Health and Human Services documents show Florida requested on Friday that the federal government send 300 ventilators to the state 'to replace expended state stores.'

The ventilators were expected to be delivered Monday.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said Wednesday that he will fight back against Joe Biden if he tries to issue federal orders that override his state-wide order banning mask mandates in schools

The document revelation comes as some Florida doctors and media reports claim hospitals in the Sunshine State have become 'overwhelmed' with COVID cases – marked surprisingly by an increase in childhood cases.

HHS hospital capacity data, however, shows numbers to the contrary.

According to the tracker, a total of 177 pediatric patients were admitted to Florida hospitals with confirmed COVID-19 cases as of this Tuesday.

Florida has the second highest number of children who were admitted to the hospital with COVID, falling behind Texas, which recorded a total of 202 total confirmed cases as of Tuesday.

Children dying from COVID-19 is still extremely rare – even with the Delta variant surge.

Nemours Children's Hospital in Orlando saw its first hospital death of the pandemic when a boy with pre-existing lung disease died there a few weeks ago, the hospital's Division Chief of Infectious Disease Dr. Kenneth Alexander revealed.

The latest in the war of words between DeSantis and the administration comes as the case surge in Florida has forced ambulances to wait outside of hospitals until beds freed up so COVID-19 patients can be admitted for treatment.

Some patients have had to wait up to an hour inside an emergency services vehicle until they can be transferred into a facility.

The wait is due to hospitals operating at near-max capacity in the state after rates of hospitalization have tripled in recent weeks.

While the ambulances are waiting to unload a patient, they are unable to take another call and help other patients in need.

Florida is one of the nation's biggest COVID hotspots. At one point last month the state accounted for a fifth of active cases across the country.

Hospitalizations in Florida rose by more than 1,100 on Tuesday to 14,787 patients with COVID-19, according to HHS. That is the highest figure recorded since the start of the pandemic.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki insisted on Wednesday that the administration's beef is not with DeSantis, but rather coroanvirus.

'Our war is not on DeSantis, it's on the virus, which we are trying to kneecap,' Psaki said during her daily briefing at the White House.

'And he does not seem to want to participate in that effort to kneecap the virus, hence our concern,' she continued of the Florida governor.

DeSantis threatened on Monday to withhold salaries from school superintendents and board members who ignored his executive order banning compulsory mask wearing.

Florida set an all-time record for COVID hospitalizations on Friday, with 12,864 hospitalized in a single day

The Florida Hospital Association reported 22,783 new cases Friday - another record high from 21,683 reported on June 30

His administration is also promising to issue private school tuition vouchers for parents who fear they and their children will be shamed or 'harassed' for refusing to mask up in school.

'With respect to enforcing any financial consequences for noncompliance of state law regarding these rules and ultimately the rights of parents to make decisions about their children's education and health care decisions, it would be the goal of the State Board of Education to narrowly tailor any financial consequences to the offense committed,' his statement on the new action read.

'Education funding is intended to benefit students first and foremost, not systems. The Governor's priorities are protecting parents' rights and ensuring that every student has access to a high-quality education that meets their unique needs,' he added.

Biden said during a press conference on Tuesday that he is looking into whether he is able to intervene in states like Florida and Texas as they ban mask mandates.

The administration could also move to provide federal funds to replace superintendent and school board paychecks if Governor DeSantis withholds them for imposing mask mandates on students.

'My concerns are deep and – I'm very concerned. And we all know why,' Biden said when asked during a press conference about some red state governors preventing compulsory mask wearing.

Biden said he 'doesn't believe' he has the power to intervene in Florida and Texas.

'We are checking that. But federal workforce, I can,' he added.

The president has already imposed a requirement that all federal workers get vaccinated or they will be subject to daily testing. The administration has also reimposed a federal workforce-wide mask mandate regardless of vaccination status.

The new rules come as the Delta variant and breakthrough cases in vaccinated Americans surge.

DeSantis and Texas Governor Greg Abbott have both gone to war with the White House as they push back against the latest guidelines.  

President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that he is 'checking' if he has the power to intervene in states that are banning mask mandates in schools 

DeSantis barred schools for compulsory mask wearing. He also threatened to withhold pay from school officials who require students wear face coverings and offered vouchers for parents to send their kids to private school if they are 'harassed' for not masking their kids

'Look, I understand that there are millions of people decided – adults who decided not to get vaccinated,' Biden said during his Tuesday press conference celebrating the Senate passage of the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package.

'I understand that to badger those folks is not likely to get them to move and get vaccinated,' he added. 'But I also understand that the reason children are becoming infected is because, in most cases, they live in low vaccination rate states and communities and they're getting it from unvaccinated adults. That's what's happening.'

'And so my plea is that for those who are not vaccinated, think about it,' Biden said. 'God willing, the FDA's going to be coming out in a reasonable time frame to say this vaccine is totally safe.'

None of the three vaccines administered in the U.S. – Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson – are fully approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Rather, they are all under emergency use authorization, a partial and expedited approval process reserved for rare, unusual circumstances – like a global pandemic.

Biden said on Tuesday that he finds it 'disingenuous' when governors claim the government doesn't have the power to impose mask mandates, but then threaten to use their power to punish entities that decide to issue their own mandates.

'When I suggest that people in zones where there's a high rate wear the masks like you all are doing, I'm told that government should get out of the way and not do that – 'They don't have the authority to do that.' And I find it interesting that some of the very people are saying that who hold government positions are people who are threatening that if a school teacher asks a student if they've been vaccinated or if a principal says that 'everyone in my school should wear a mask' or the school board votes for it, that governor will nullify it. That governor has the authority to say 'you can't do that,' he posed.

'I find that totally counterintuitive and, quite frankly, disingenuous,'Biden added.

Psaki said Tuesday that Biden will help Florida schools after DeSantis threatened to withhold salaries of those who don't follow his order banning compulsory face masks for students. 

That option could include paying the salaries with federal funds.

'We're looking into what's possible,' Psaki said as she praised 'the courage and the boldness of a number of leaders in Florida, including in Miami Dade County people, who are stepping up to do the right thing to protect students and keep schools safe and open.' 

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Biden will help pay staff in Florida schools if funds are withheld from the governor

She claimed one option the administration is considering is using the federal funds allocated to Florida as part of the American Rescue Plan to cover the salaries.

Psaki noted the money that was 'distributed to Florida to provide assistance to schools have not yet been distributed from the state level. So the question is, why not, and those can be used to cover expenses that come up in this period of time. They're federal funds and they're under federal discretion.'

DeSantis said in mid-July he wanted to use the money to give $1,000 bonuses to teachers and principals with the money. But the Department of Education told him at the time that may not be a legal way for him to use the federal funds. 

She ruled out withholding any federal funds as part of the White House response. 

'We don't want to hurt the people of Florida. We want the people of Florida to continue to do what they've done, which is go out and get vaccinated,' she said.

Florida received approximately $10.23 billion under the American Rescue Plan, which was passed by Democrats in Congress to help those hurt financially by the COVID pandemic. Under the plan, counties in the state will get $4.17 billion, metropolitan cities will receive $1.47 billion, and other local governments will receive $1.4 billion.

And Psaki had strong words for Gov. DeSantis, who has been harshly criticized by the president and his administration for signing an executive order that bans mandatory face masks for students after the CDC recommended all kids in classrooms wear them when they return school this fall. 

'If you're not interested in following the public health guidelines to protect the lives of people in your state, to give parents some comfort as they're sending their kids to school - schools are opening in Florida this week, I know, in many parts of Florida - then get out of the way,' she said. 

DeSantis wrote in his statement on the new rules that 'the State Board of Education could move to withhold the salary of the district superintendent or school board members, as a narrowly tailored means to address the decision-makers who led to the violation of law.'

The statement was released in the midst of an ongoing battle over mandating masks in schools, a topic that has caused division in school districts across the state as the Delta variant continues to spread before the start of the new school year.

At least one Florida superintendent offered an immediate and defiant response to DeSantis' salary threat.

Leon County School Superintendent Rocky Hanna told school officials on Monday that 'you can't put a price tag on someone's life including my salary.'

He added: 'We want to make sure that children also have access to a high quality education but they can't if they're sick and in the hospital.' 

Anti-mask protesters rally outside the Hillsborough County Schools Board meeting at the district office on July 27

Protesters in favor of a mask mandate hold protest signs at the Pinellas County Schools Administration Building in Largo, Florida

Late last month, DeSantis issued an executive order that prohibits county school boards from imposing masking requirements on students. 

And just last week, the Department of Health and Department of Education released emergency rules to allow parents to make the decision for their children to wear masks.

COVID-19 cases are surging across the Sunshine State with officials recording 12,864 hospitalizations related to the pandemic.

Since last Tuesday, record breaking surges have been recorded when there were 10,389 patients - soaring past the previous peak of 10,170 hospitalizations on July 23 2020. 

The Florida Hospital Association reported 22,783 new cases Friday - another record high from 21,683 reported on June 30. A fifth of all news cases have been attributed to children.

The state releases its data just once a week on a Friday and is expected to show an increase in cases for the seventh week in a row.

The White House has been attacking DeSantis and Abbott for pushing back on CDC recommendations on mask wearing as COVID cases rise in their state. 

DeSantis is seeking a second term as Florida governor and is being mentioned as a contender for the GOP presidential nomination in 2024. 

Biden got in his own hit on DeSantis last Thursday, joking 'governor who' when asked about the Florida Republican. 

The two men have gotten into a tit-for-tat over COVID guidelines with Biden criticizing DeSantis for telling Florida schools not to follow CDC guidelines on having students wear face masks. 

Biden asked DeSantis to 'get out of the way' of restrictions as COVID cases are on the rise. And DeSantis snapped back: 'Why don't you do your job?'

Texas ranks second behind Florida for the highest daily average COVID-19 cases.

CDC admits it DID overcount Florida's COVID cases: Agency revises down state's weekend numbers from 28,000 to 19,000 but offers no explanation after falsely claiming 'record' infections 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has quietly updated Florida's COVID-19 figures after accusations of overcounting earlier this week.

On Monday, the Florida Department of Health accused the CDC of misreporting the state's weekend COVID-19 numbers.

The federal health agency had posted that 28,317 new Covid cases were recorded in The Sunshine State on Sunday, a record-high that was reported by multiple media outlets.

However, the DOH stated that is true total was 15,319 cases, indicating an overcount of more than 13,000. 

On Wednesday, the CDC updated Florida's new cases to 23,958 for Friday, 21,487 on Saturday and 19,584 on Sunday - quietly admitting that the state DOH was right - but did not offer an explanation as to why.

Interestingly, the revised CDC numbers are still higher than totals the DOH published to its Twitter account on Monday. 

CDC revised Florida COVID-19 figures after state Department of Health accused agency of overcounting numbers and reporting 28,317 new Covid cases. Updates figures show 19,584 on Sunday

INCORRECT: CDC reported a new record of more than 28,000 cases on Sunday. Florida's DOH accused the CDC of combining multiple days' worth of data into one

Florida's DOH claims the CDC combined multiple days' worth of data into one, leading to an overreport of 13,000 cases 

The DOH official Twitter account took aim at local news outlets who published stories about the state setting a new record of daily COVID-19 cases on Monday, citing the CDC data.

'This is not accurate,' the agency tweeted on Monday evening, in response to an article by WSVN 7 News in Miami.

'Florida follows CDC guidelines reporting cases Monday through Friday, other than holidays. 

'Consequently, each Monday or Tuesday, there will be two or three days of data reported at a time. When data is published, it is attributed evenly to the previous days.'

According to the Florida DOH, a total of 56,386 cases over three days over the weekend - 21,500 on Friday, 19,567 on Saturday and 15,319 on Sunday. 

Revised CDC data included 2,000 additional cases on Friday and Saturday, and nearly 4,000 additional cases on Sunday. 

The reason for these different figures is unknown, and the CDC did not immediately respond to a request from the DailyMail.com for explanation.

Originally, the CDC reported the data over two days instead of three, causing a high of more than 28,000 cases to be reported. 

The DOH then gave a potential reason for the error in a subsequent tweet.

'They combined MULTIPLE days into one. We anticipate CDC will correct the record,' the agency said in a tweet.

Florida does not report daily COVID-19 cases to the public.

Instead, starting in June 2021, the state decided to gather a week's worth of cases and report the total on Friday afternoon.

State health officials cited the falling case and test positivity rate as reason for the change two months ago.

 In the time since, Florida has suffered the nation's largest outbreak of the virus, accounting for 20 percent of active cases. 

Other states have followed Florida is the halting of daily case reporting, including Iowa and South Dakota.

Nebraska has stopped reporting on any county-level data at all, with only some individual counties throughout the state still making numbers public.  

The Cornhusker State's COVID-19 dashboard is also no longer available to the public. 

This is the first time daily numbers from Florida have been directly reported to the public since early June.

Florida has been embroiled in controversy regarding their reporting of Covid numbers in the past as well.

Last year, Rebekah Jones was fired from her job at the DOH after claiming that she was pressured by supervisors to adjust case data to make reopening the state for politically viable.  

Rebekah Jones was fired from her job at the DoH in May, and subsequently set up her own version of the state's COVID-19 dashboard. Her house was raided in December on allegations that she hacked state computer systems. Gov Ron DeSantis refuted claims from Jones that the state was misreporting virus data, saying 'obviously, she's got issues.'

She also reported that the way Florida reported test positivity rate could be misleading because the state counted total tests rather than individuals tested, meaning one negative person could test multiple times and drive down positivity rates.

Jones launched her own version of a state Covid dashboard, using data leaked to her by her sources within the organization.

Florida Gov Ron DeSantis refuted Jones's claims.

'She was fired because she wasn't doing a good job,' DeSantis said in a news conference in December.

'None of the stuff that she's said was ever proven. You'd think that would be the end of it. Obviously, she's got issues.' 

In December, state police raided her home.

The Department of Law Enforcement reported that allegations that she had hacked DOH computer systems were reason for the raid.   

Exact numbers from the state can not be deciphered, but it is clear the Covid situation in Florida is dire.

Cases have increase more than eight-fold over the past month, from an average of over 3,000 cases a day in mid-July to now over 27,000 a day in mid-August.   

The CDC considers every county in the state to be of 'high' COVID-19 transmission.

Cases across the United States are still rising due to an Indian 'Delta' variant fueled outbreak.

Over the past two weeks, average daily cases have grown from 63,361 on July 27 to 124,470 on August 9 - a 96 percent increase in cases.