Medical examiner explains COVID-19
Orange County Medical Examiners explain what is considered a coronavirus-related death. We pushed for answers after learning that a fatal motorcycle accident was listed as part of the state’s COVID-19 death count.
LAGO MARÍA, FLA. – (UPDATE) On Saturday, Kent Donahue, from Dr. Pino’s office, said the motorcyclist’s death “was reviewed and he was removed from the list for COVID deaths.”
Two days after a FOX 35 investigation, health officials confirm that the death of a motorcycle that was initially counted among COVID-19 deaths has been removed from the state’s data.
A spokesman for the Florida Department of Health in Orange County said it was reviewed and removed, but did not know exactly when.
FOX 35 began investigating this Thursday after Orange County Health Officer Dr. Raúl Pino said a man who had a coronavirus but died in a motorcycle accident had been added to the COVID death data.
At the time, he said he had asked the state to remove it from his numbers, but he didn’t know if it ever was.
After reporting this Thursday and Friday, authorities notified FOX 35 on Saturday that they verified that death is no longer counted.
(PREVIOUS HISTORY VERSION) Health officials say they are still trying to find out if a man killed in a motorcycle accident was added to the state’s COVID-19 death count.
On Thursday, Orange County Health Officer Dr. Raúl Pino said that someone who had coronavirus but died in a motorcycle accident could have been added to the COVID deaths. He was asked if that person was removed.
“I don’t think so. I have to double check,” said Pino. “We were arguing, arguing, or trying to argue with the state. Not because of the numbers. They are 100 … it makes no difference if they are 99. But the fact of that the guy didn’t die from COVID19 … he died in an accident. But you could actually argue that it could have been COVID-19 that caused him to crash. I don’t know the conclusion of that.
FOX 35 INVESTIGATES: Questions posed after fatal motorcycle accident listed as COVID-19 death
FOX 35 News contacted the Medical Examiner’s Office because they sign the death of COVID-19. The chief medical examiner says someone in their 20s with COVID died in a motorcycle accident in June, but that person’s cause of death was not listed as coronavirus.
“We only attribute COVID deaths if COVID is the cause of death or if it contributed to the cause of death. We don’t put it on the death certificate if they died with COVID-19. So, for example, someone in a car accident, an overdose if they were shot, ”said Dr. Joshua Stephany, chief medical examiner for Orange and Osceola counties.
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Dr. Pino’s office says he is still working to verify if the case he told us about Thursday is still in the state’s data. The Tallahassee health department office has not answered our questions about this, but in a statement officials say a “COVID death” is determined if “COVID19 appears as the immediate or underlying cause of death, or as one of the most important conditions contributing to death or, if there is a confirmed COVID-19 infection from a laboratory test, and the cause of death does not meet the exclusion criteria, such as trauma, suicide, homicide, overdose, car accident , etc. “
We also request another interview with Dr. Pino for clarity on these comments. His spokesperson told us it was not available.
