Florida Suspends Alcohol Consumption at Bars Amid Coronavirus Surge

FLORIDA IS SUSPENDING the consumption of alcohol at bars amid a surge in the state's coronavirus cases.

The move comes after Gov. Ron DeSantis threatened to revoke liquor licenses from bars that didn’t follow the state’s reopening guidelines.

Halsey Beshears, the secretary of the state Department of Business and Professional Regulation, announced the decision in a tweet on Friday.

The move comes after Gov. Ron DeSantis threatened to revoke liquor licenses from bars that didn't follow the state's reopening guidelines.

The Florida Department of Health on Friday reported that the state saw a record 8,942 new virus cases the day before.

Officials report more than 114,000 cases of the virus in the state and over 3,300 deaths, according to the state's virus dashboard.

Researchers behind a coronavirus model put out by the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania recently said that the state has "all the makings of the next large epicenter" and pointed to social distancing, hand washing and mask wearing as ways to reduce the spread of the virus.

DeSantis has encouraged mask use but said he does not plan to mandate it on a statewide level, leading to several jurisdictions moving forward with their own mask mandates.