In an open letter to Ross Countians, Health Commissioner Garrett Guillozet and RCHD Medical Director Christopher Brown are urging citizens to “take this phase of the pandemic more seriously than ever.”
The letter cites the amount of new COVID-19 cases reported to the Health District offices (484 since November 1st and over 700 in October) and the deaths of 56 residents due to the coronavirus as a concern for a potential increase in hospitalizations. “We face an uncertain future with a decrease in hospital capacity and limited staffing” the letter notes.
(COLUMBUS, Ohio)—Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Lt. Governor Jon Husted today provided the following updates on Ohio’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
CRITICAL HOSPITALIZATION LEVELS
As of today, there are 3,829 hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Ohio, with 943 of those individuals in the ICU. These are the highest patient counts Ohio has had during the pandemic and more than double the hospitalizations recorded during previous peaks.
While statewide testing has increased by 43 percent, positive cases have increased by nearly 300 percent in the past month.
New health data compiled by the Ohio Department of Health revealed today that Franklin County has reached a Level 4 Purple Public Emergency with severe exposure and spread. All 88 counties remain at “high incidence” as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For the first time, no counties are rated below Level 2.
“Other counties may not yet be seeing continuous, uninterrupted increases in the same way as Franklin County, but make no mistake – almost all counties are seeing more cases and more healthcare use that could threaten the medical system if they continue,” said Governor DeWine.
Governor DeWine today announced his intention to veto Senate Bill 311 if passed by the Ohio General Assembly. The bill, which is currently under consideration in the Ohio House of Representatives, would severely limit the ability of the Ohio Department of Health to issue orders necessary to prevent the spread of infectious diseases now and in the future.
“Imagine if a country hostile to the United States smuggles a biological agent into our state and unleashes it in Ohio – our state would need to respond quickly to quarantine the area to stop its spread. This bill would make Ohio slow to respond in a crisis and would put our citizens in severe danger,” said Governor DeWine. “I’ve always listened to the advice of experts, and the experts are telling me this is a dangerous idea. Doctors, nurses, and scientists have all advised me that this bill would do great harm if it became law.”
CHILDCARE DASHBOARDS
Two new COVID-19 dashboards tracking the number of cases at Ohio child care centers are now available.
The first dashboard tracks the number of children and staff cases in individual centers. Because of the small size of home-based providers, many of which serve six or fewer children, positive COVID cases from children and adults in those facilities will be tracked by county on a separate dashboard.
RETAIL COMPLIANCE UPDATE:
Ohio’s Retail Compliance Unit has visited more than 50 percent of Ohio counties in its first three days. Agents have observed over 90 percent compliance in social distancing and mask-wearing in retail establishments, a noticeable improvement.
CURRENT CASE DATA
In total, there are 326,615 confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 reported in Ohio and 5,890 confirmed and probable COVID-19 deaths. A total of 23 people have been hospitalized throughout the pandemic, including 4,22 admissions to intensive care units. In-depth data can be accessed by visiting coronavirus.ohio.gov.
Video of today’s full update, including versions with foreign language translation, can be viewed on the Ohio Channel’s YouTube page.
For more information on Ohio’s response to COVID-19, visit coronavirus.ohio.gov or call 1-833-4-ASK-ODH.
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Due to a new health advisory issued by the Franklin County Department of Health and the Columbus Department of Health Wednesday afternoon that recommends the games not be played in Franklin County, the Ohio High School Athletic Association is moving this weekend’s football state championship games to Paul Brown Tiger Stadium in Massillon, which has offered to host all six games. The games were scheduled to be played at Fortress Obetz in southeast Columbus.
The schedule remains the same as announced Wednesday, with games on Friday and Saturday at 1:15 and 6:15 and then Sunday at 12:15 and 5:15. Of note, in the Division II title game, Akron Archbishop Hoban High School has agreed to play Massillon Washington on Massillon’s home field. The OHSAA has now designated Hoban as the home team in the game.
The decision came Thursday morning after discussions with officials at Obetz and Franklin County. The OHSAA met virtually with the 12 finalist schools at 11:30 a.m. to inform them and answer questions.
“Completing this weekend’s state championship games is very important to the schools, student-athletes and communities, so we felt strongly about finding a place to play,” said OHSAA Executive Director Doug Ute. “These 12 schools just want to play and we thank them for accepting this change. We would also like to especially thank Massillon Washington High School for stepping up to host, and also Hoban for agreeing to play there.”
Paul Brown Tiger Stadium served as a host of the OHSAA football state championships from 1990 through 2013.
“This is a big change at the 11th hour, but Massillon Washington can accommodate these games and the number of fans that are permitted to attend,” said Beau Rugg, OHSAA Senior Director of Officiating and Sport Management and the OHSAA’s football administrator. “We are pleased to be playing football this weekend and are excited that these 12 schools will be able to finish their seasons.”
The Franklin County and Columbus health advisory recommends a pause on all extra-curricular activities for schools and asks all persons to be home by 6 p.m.
“Fortress Obetz was excited to host these games and we appreciate all the work that they put into preparations,” Ute said.
Football State Championship Games
All games at Massillon Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. Home team listed first.
According to the report, the OHSAA received approval from Governor Mike DeWine’s office Wednesday.
The Ohio Department of Health Order allows for 300 fans or 15% capacity fo the venue, whichever is less. Just like during the Fall Season, the normal protocols are in place for athletes testing positive for COVID-19.
For Basketball, expect spectators to be limited to parents of participants, which includes teams, cheerleaders and pep band members. 15 players will be permitted on the roster with 18 chairs available for all staff and six feet between those on the bench. It’s also suggested for teams traveling on separate buses for freshmen, junior varsity and varsity games with those buses departing following their contest.
Wrestling will follow similar distancing practices for their benches.
Locally, swimming presents some difficulties with tight spaces at the respective YMCA pools used for area schools, but they should be able to work around the parameters put in place. Only McClain HS has a natatorium among the area schools. However, swimming would likely suffer should the Governor’s office to close fitness centers. The same could be said for area high school Bowling teams should bowling centers receive a shutdown order.
Chillicothe’s Brandon Noel prepares for a dunk in their Cavs’ tournament win last February.
FROM THE OHIO HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION(released November 20, 2020)
COLUMBUS, Ohio – In a memo to its member schools on Wednesday, the Ohio High School Athletic Association reaffirmed its position that the upcoming winter sports seasons will begin as previously scheduled. While individual school districts can pause sports at any time due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the OHSAA does not intend to alter the statewide season dates.
The decision came after discussions with the Governor’s Office, the OHSAA Board of Directors, OHSAA staff and many school administrators, along with the results of a recent survey of OHSAA member school administrators. Of 1,464 survey responses 826 respondents (56 percent) voted to begin winter sports as previously scheduled.
“Though we are seeing a spike in COVID-19 cases in Ohio, the majority of our member schools want the opportunity to move forward with winter sports as planned,” said OHSAA Executive Director Doug Ute. “As always, the decision to play sports is a local school decision and there will certainly be schools that pause sports for periods of time in the months to come, but if the majority of our schools want to move forward, then we want to provide that opportunity. As we have said previously, our member schools provide our student-athletes with the safest possible environment to participate. If we were to delay, students would find opportunities to compete in sports through non-school programs that may not be focused on safety and are not education-based.”
The survey results showed 33 percent of school administrators favored delaying winter sports until early January, and 11 percent voted to delay winter sports indefinitely until statewide COVID-19 conditions improve.
Noting the Governor’s Curfew Order
As it relates to school sports, the Governor’s 10:00 p.m. Ohio curfew order does not mean that teams and fans must be home from their competitions by 10:00 p.m., but venues must be vacated by 10:00 p.m. The OHSAA encourages schools and conferences to alter start times, if needed, so that competitions end in time to close the facility by 10:00 p.m.
COVID-19 General Guidance (Including Mandates; Spectator Capacity, and Recommended Best Practices)
It is especially important that requirements for facial coverings, social distancing and frequent hand washing be followed and that facility hosts disinfect and clean competition and high contact areas frequently. Also note that the Order has a limit on spectator capacity, which is the lesser of 15 percent of fixed, permanent seats or 300.
Winter Sports Requirements, Recommendations and Modifications
The OHSAA staff has developed sport-specific requirements, recommendations and modifications for schools when conducting interscholastic competition in winter sports. Links to the sport-specific requirements, recommendations and modifications for winter sports are available here:
The 45th Great American Smokeout, promoted by the American Cancer Society for 45 years is Thursday, November 19th.
According to a release by Adena Health System, in both their 2016 and 2019 community health needs assessments conducted by Partners for a Healthier Ross County, smoking was linked to three of the top five leading causes of death in the community, including heart disease, lung cancer and other respiratory issues like COPD.
“Not only is smoking and other tobacco use contributing to early death of Ross County citizens, but it also is occurring at higher rates than in other parts of the state and country,” said Kim Jones of Adena Health System and co-chair of Partners for a Healthier Ross County. The 2019 assessment survey determined that more than 25% of Ross County citizens use tobacco, which is almost 10% higher than the rest of the nation.
These statistics enabled the Ross County Health District to obtain a grant from the Ohio Department of Health in 2018, and coordinate BreatheWell Ross, a sub-committee of Partners for a Healthier Ross County that educates the community on the dangers of smoking and vaping, as well as promotes the options smokers have locally to help them quit.
The VA Medical Center is encouraging veterans to take the first step to stop smoking as well.
In addition to counseling, VA provides other services designed to help Veterans stop smoking, including prescription medications, nicotine-replacement products like gum and patches and resources such as Quit VET and SmokefreeVET.
For more information on smoking and vaping cessation, contact Kim Hardesty at the Ross County Health District, at 740-779-9652 or khardesty@rosscountyhealth.org and for more information about tobacco cessation at the VAMC, contact Dr. Kamara McGill at 740-773-1141, extension 6941, or visit www.mentalhealth.va.gov/quit-tobacco. Veterans not enrolled in the VA healthcare system are encouraged to visit chillicothe.va.gov/enrollment.asp to register or call 740-772-7170 with questions.
Chillicothe’s Downtown Holiday Open House is November 20-22, but it will not have the festive kickoff as in recent years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
MORE: Watch highlights of the 2018 & 2019 Tree Lighting ceremonies below.
Workers from Bright Solutions at work stringing lights on the City’s Christmas Tree at the south entrance of Chillicothe’s Yoctangee Park.
“We tried to wait as long as we could to try to pull off a tree lighting ceremony” said Mike Throne, President and CEO of the Chillicothe-Ross Chamber of Commerce. “It’s just not wise or in the best interest of public safety to bring a thousand people into downtown in close contact to each other – we can’t guarantee people are wearing masks, we can’t guarantee that people are distancing, so we decided we would scrap the lighting ceremony this year.”
While the usual opening festivities will not be held, the park will be lighted with as in the past. Kids can still see Santa, who’s house has been moved into Yoctangee Park near the Rotary Club Shelter House on Enderlin Circle, however it will be a drive-thru experience each Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Ivy’s will also have the carriage rides available, but reservations will be required by calling 740-779-9522. Downtown Merchants will still have their doors open to shoppers and the restaurants will be open each day.
Also returning is skating rink in the Municipal Parking Lot at the corner of South Paint and 4th Streets. Throne says the operating dates will last into mind-January with the potential for extended dates into February.
Shoppers are reminded the statewide Health Order for wearing facial coverings are required in all retail stores.
Watch the interview with Mike Throne by clicking the photo below.
Santa’s House on Enderlin Circle in Yoctangee ParkThe skating rink returns to the Municipal Parking Lot at South Paint and 4th Streets and will operate into mid-January with the potential of extended dates into February.
Watch the Governor’s Tuesday COVID-19 News Conference here
(COLUMBUS, Ohio)—Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Lt. Governor Jon Husted today provided the following updates on Ohio’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
STATEWIDE CURFEW
Governor DeWine announced today that the Ohio Department of Health will be issuing a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. statewide curfew beginning on Thursday, November 19. The curfew will be in effect for 21 days.
The curfew will not apply to those going to or from work, those who have an emergency, or those who need medical care. The curfew is not intended to stop anyone from getting groceries or going to a pharmacy. Picking up carry-out or a drive-thru meal and ordering for delivery will be permitted, but serving food and drink in person must cease at 10 p.m.
Additional details on the 21-day curfew order are forthcoming.
“We’re not shutting down, we’re slowing down,” said Governor DeWine. “The curfew is aimed at helping to reduce the number of person-to-person contacts because the only way virus lives is when it goes from one person to another. We have to flatten this curve again and get this under control.”
The decision to impose a 21-day curfew was made with input from the medical and business communities with consideration to the economic and mental health impacts that another shutdown could cause.
“This is a balanced approach that will slow down people coming together and impact the spread of the virus to the point that it can be controlled, and at the same time, not cause a catastrophic effect in the economy,” said Lt. Governor Husted. “You have to care about both the economy and health – you can’t just care about one in isolation. Based on all of the recommendations we considered, a curfew was the most impactful option with the least disruption.”
Governor DeWine also encouraged Ohioans to do one thing each day that will decrease the spread of the virus through mask-wearing, social distancing, and limiting the number of daily contacts.
VACCINE PREPOSITIONING
Governor DeWine today provided details on Ohio’s vaccine prepositioning plan.
The Ohio Department of Health has identified 10 sites across the state that will receive the pre-positioned vaccine after a COVID-19 vaccine is given emergency-use authorization. Once the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices issues its recommendation on how to use the vaccine, these sites will begin administering the vaccine immediately to those who choose to receive it and are identified as able to receive it in the first stage.
Ohio will first vaccinate those who are most at risk, including those who work in long-term care facilities, nursing homes, and other congregate-care facilities, high-risk health care workers, and first responders.
The ten pre-positioned sites were selected based on geography, population, and access to ultra-cold storage capacity. Other sites will begin receiving shipments of vaccine following final approval, potentially just days after the pre-positioned sites begin administering the vaccine.
Governor DeWine once again encouraged citizens to remain vigilant in practicing safety measures until a vaccine is available.
HOME AND HEALTHY FOR THE HOLIDAYS
As students at Ohio’s colleges and universities are preparing to head home for the holidays, the Ohio Department of Higher Education and Ohio Hospital Association are launching a new campaign to encourage students to keep themselves and family members safe while they’re at home.
The “Home and Healthy for the Holidays” campaign will provide tips for students to follow before, during, and after holiday travel. The campaign will also share information for students on what they should do if they have no access to testing or if they receive a positive or negative test result.
College students are encouraged to share how they plan to be safe during the holidays by posting to social media using the hashtags #HomeandHealthyfortheHolidays and #BackOnCampus21.
NEW HOLIDAY GUIDE
Governor DeWine announced the release of a new holiday celebration guide from the Ohio Department of Health to help families celebrate safely during the 2020-2021 holiday season. The guide provides alternatives to large in-person celebrations for a variety of holidays, including Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Las Posadas, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Orthodox New Year, and others. “This year’s holidays will look different as we make adjustments to keep our loved ones and ourselves healthy, so we can celebrate together in the future,” said Governor DeWine. “Regardless of what holidays you celebrate, please keep the celebration small, and wear as mask and stay socially distanced if you absolutely must celebrate with individuals outside of your household.”The holiday gathering guide is available at coronavirus.ohio.gov.
CURRENT CASE DATA
In total, there are 312,443 confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 reported in Ohio and 5,772 confirmed and probable COVID-19 deaths. A total of 22,846 people have been hospitalized throughout the pandemic, including 4,250 admissions to intensive care units. In-depth data can be accessed by visiting coronavirus.ohio.gov.
Video of today’s full update, including versions with foreign language translation, can be viewed on the Ohio Channel’s YouTube page.
For more information on Ohio’s response to COVID-19, visit coronavirus.ohio.gov or call 1-833-4-ASK-ODH.
(COLUMBUS, Ohio)—Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced that Ohio Department of Health Interim Director Lance Himes signed a revised health order to limit mass gatherings in Ohio.
“Despite the health order that limited mass gatherings to 10 people that was signed in April remaining in effect, we have seen rampant spread of the virus as a result of banquets, wedding receptions, and social gatherings following funerals,” said Governor DeWine. “We have seen great tragedy associated with such events. It’s not the ceremonies causing the problem. It’s the party afterward.”
In order to minimize the spread of COVID-19 through airborne particles passing between people in close contact, wedding receptions, funeral repasts, and other events at banquet facilities are subject to the following restrictions:
No socializing or activities in open congregate areas and no dancing.
Guests must be seated at all times. Traditional wedding reception events such as first dance, toasts, tossing the bouquet and cutting the cake are permitted.
If serving food and beverages, guests must be served at their seats. No self-serve buffets and no self-serve bar areas permitted.
Masks must be worn at all times unless actively consuming food or beverages.
No more than 10 people should be seated at a table and those individuals must be from the same household.
This order does not apply to religious observances; First Amendment protected speech, including petition or referendum circulators, and any activity by media; and to governmental meetings which include meetings that are required to be open to the public.
This order goes into effect November 17, 2020 at 12:01 a.m.
CHILLICOTHE – In an effort to protect the health of Veterans and visitors at the Chillicothe VA and Community Clinics, those accessing the VA will be screened for Coronavirus prior to admission onto campus.
The North Entrance at the Chillicothe VA will be closed effective Monday, November 16 at Noon. All incoming and outgoing traffic will use the South or West Gates. Please allow yourself a few extra minutes for possible delays.
Screening questions include:
Have you experienced any of the following symptoms in the past 48 hours: fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea?
Within the past 14 days, have you been in close physical contact (6 feet or closer for at least 15 minutes) with a person who is known to have laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 or with anyone who has any symptoms consistent with COVID-19?
Are you currently waiting on the results of a COVID-19 test?
Individuals are encouraged to take every day preventative actions to avoid being exposed to the virus:
Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.
Stay home if you are sick or becoming sick.
Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.
Please contact your healthcare provider if you are experiencing any of the above COVID-like symptoms.
(COLUMBUS, Ohio)—Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Lt. Governor Jon Husted today provided the following updates on Ohio’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
STATEWIDE HIGH INCIDENCE
New health data compiled by the Ohio Department of Health found that all 88 counties in Ohio remain at “high incidence” as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
According to today’s updated Ohio Public Health Advisory System map, 68 counties are currently rated as having a very high risk of exposure and spread (Red Level 3), up from 56 counties last week. This represents the highest number of Red Level 3 counties since the launch of the advisory system in July.
Both Franklin and Tuscarawas counties met six of seven advisory-system indicators and are approaching Purple Level 4.
Ohio also had another record-breaking day for new cases reported in a 24-hour period, with 7,101 cases reported between yesterday and today. A total of 268 new hospitalizations were reported, as well as 35 more deaths.
Governor DeWine today announced the creation of a new zip code dashboard. Ohioans can now view data from their local communities and filter data by probable or confirmed case status, county, a specific zip code, or a specific time period.
Case counts will also be available on a downloadable, filterable chart sorted from the most cases to the least. To protect confidentiality, case counts for zip codes with fewer than five cases or less than 100 total residents will not be displayed.
Governor DeWine also announced a new flu dashboard that expands the statewide data that the Ohio Department of Health shares on seasonal flu activity each year.
The new dashboard shows flu trends over time with charts that indicate whether flu hospitalizations or cases of flu-like illness are on the rise or decline as compared to the previous week and compared to the five-year average data.
Hospitalization data is broken down by region, county, date, sex, age, race, and ethnicity. The data shows only positive flu PCR tests reported by public health laboratories and selected clinical laboratories that participate in the national flu monitoring system.
Additional data will be added moving forward, and the dashboard will be updated every Friday at 9 a.m.
The new flu dashboard can be found at flu.ohio.gov.
FUNDING FOR LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENTS
Governor DeWine announced that the state is setting aside $30 million to assist the state’s 113 local health departments. Each department will receive $200,000 and will have the flexibility to determine how to best use the funds as they see fit to fight COVID-19.
The remaining money will be used to hire contact tracers to support local health departments. Contact tracers will deploy where they are needed across the state to assist in identifying individuals who may have been exposed to COVID-19 and prevent further spread.
GRANT ASSISTANCE STILL AVAILABLE
Lt. Governor Jon Husted today reminded Ohio small businesses that the application period for the Small Business Relief Grant and Bar and Restaurant Assistance Fund is now open.
The Small Business Relief Grant provides a $10,000 grant to small businesses with at least one but no more than 25 employees. The grant funding will help businesses pay for a variety of expenses, including mortgage or rent payments; utility payments; salaries, wages, or compensation for employees and contractors; business supplies or equipment; and other costs. Grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. To ensure the grants are spread throughout the state, $500,000 will be set aside for businesses in each of Ohio’s 88 counties. When a county’s allocation is depleted, businesses in that county will be eligible to receive grants from the remaining funds in the overall grant program.
The Bar and Restaurant Assistance Fund provides $2,500 for those permit holders who haven’t been able to fully use their liquor permit. Businesses with an on-premise consumption permit through the Ohio Department of Commerce will be eligible to receive $2,500 per unique business location. Businesses need to have an active on-premise permit as of close of business on October 23, 2020.
Governor DeWine today signed a proclamation declaring a state of emergency in Hamilton County due to the catastrophic crash that heavily damaged the Brent Spence Bridge which connects Cincinnati and Kentucky.
Although Kentucky leads all bridge maintenance, Governor DeWine authorized the Ohio Department of Transportation to assist with repairs so that the bridge can reopen as soon as possible.
The state of emergency declaration will allow Ohio to recover bridge repair expenses from the Federal Emergency Relief Program.
GOVERNOR’S IMAGINATION LIBRARY
First Lady Fran DeWine announced today that the Ohio Governor’s Imagination Library Program is now being offered to children in all of Ohio’s 88 counties.
Kids from birth to age five statewide are now eligible to receive a free book in the mail each month, no matter what county they live in.
When First Lady DeWine started this program with the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, only a handful of counties offered the books and 13 percent of Ohio children were enrolled.
Parents are encouraged to enroll their kids in this free literary program. To sign up, visit ohioimaginationlibrary.org Learn more about the Ohio Governor’s Imagination Library in the video below.
CURRENT CASE DATA
In total, there are 267,356 confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 reported in Ohio and 5,623 confirmed and probable COVID-19 deaths. A total of 21,290 people have been hospitalized throughout the pandemic, including 4,122 admissions to intensive care units. In-depth data can be accessed by visiting coronavirus.ohio.gov.
Video of today’s full update, including versions with foreign language translation, can be viewed on the Ohio Channel’s YouTube page.
For more information on Ohio’s response to COVID-19, visit coronavirus.ohio.gov or call 1-833-4-ASK-ODH.
