As Florida schools opened their doors to students – some maskless – the number of children hospitalized with COVID-19 has increased more than tenfold.

Florida reported 19,048 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, the highest number in four days, according to data posted Wednesday on the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.

A second North Florida school district will be closed through the end of this week because of the worsening spread of COVID-19. Gulf County schools Superintendent Jim Norton announced Tuesday that the district would close schools Wednesday through Friday.

A Democratic state lawmaker and a non-profit group have filed a lawsuit alleging the Florida Department of Health has violated public-records laws by refusing to provide detailed data about the COVID-19 pandemic.

The heads of some Florida universities are reminding students and faculty that campus leaders’ “hands are tied” when it comes to taking steps to try to curb the spread of COVID-19 and are trying to work around limitations as the academic year is underway.

Florida leads the nation in the percentage of inpatient hospital beds occupied by people with COVID-19, according to data posted Tuesday by the federal government.

The number of people hospitalized in Florida because of COVID-19 continued at a record pace Monday, according to the Florida Hospital Association.

Marking a victory for colleges and universities that shut down campuses last year during the COVID-19 pandemic, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill Tuesday shielding the schools from lawsuits seeking refunds for students because of the closures.

Campuses closed in March 2020 in an effort to prevent the spread of COVID-19, with students forced to learn online.

As of Friday, the United States had nearly 597,000 reported COVID-19 deaths since the pandemic started. Here are numbers for Florida and other states that have had the most deaths:

— California: 63,376 deaths

— New York: 53,377 deaths