The Florida Hospital Association announced the end of the state's summer Covid-19 surge, following a significant reduction in hospitalizations, in today's bite-sized hospital and health industry news from Florida, Georgia, and Illinois.

• Florida: The Florida Hospital Association (FHA) on Friday announced the end of the delta variant's summer surge, citing a statewide decrease in Covid-19 hospitalizations. According to FHA, the number of hospitalized Covid-19 patients in the state fell 19% in the past two weeks. In addition, recent CDC data showed a 10% decline in Covid-19 hospitalizations across the nation in just one week. "While Covid-19 remains a concern, the summer delta surge in Florida is over," said Mary Mayhew, president and CEO of FHA. (Gamble, Becker's Hospital Review, 10/22)

• Georgia: A CDC investigation on Friday found that an aromatherapy spray containing the same kind of bacteria that causes melioidosis—an extremely rare tropical disease—sickened four people and killed two in Georgia, Kansas, Minnesota and Texas earlier this year. Walmart and the Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a recall for 3,900 bottles of the spray in six different scents sold in roughly 55 Walmart stores from February to October of this year. (Frazier, Axios, 10/22)

• Illinois: Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) on Friday announced that over 55,000 daycare workers will be required to receive the Covid-19 vaccine or undergo weekly testing. According to Pritzker, "Vaccinations offer life-saving protection for the people who receive them and make the community safer for the people who can't—including the babies, toddlers, and young children not yet eligible for the vaccine." Daycare workers will be required to receive their first dose by Dec. 3 and their second dose by Jan. 3, if they receive a two-dose vaccine. (Frazier, Axios, 10/22)