The state of Ohio has begun taking appointments for COVID-19 vaccinations at the FEMA-operated site at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland, which opens next week, and the initial response is strong.
Gov. Mike DeWine at his coronavirus briefing on Thursday, March 11, said more than 17,000 people have registered to get their vaccine at Wolstein Center site overseen by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
"They're off to a good start already," DeWine said. The site opens on Wednesday, March 17. It will operate 12-hours a day, seven days a week for at least eight weeks. The Wolstein Center site is designed to handle 6,000 vaccinations per day.
Vaccination activity statewide is picking up considerably, DeWine noted, as effective Thursday, people age 50 and older can get the COVID-19 vaccine, as well as people with Type 2 diabetes or end-stage renal disease. That expansion increases the eligibility population in Ohio by about 1.4 million people.
The state's site for vaccination information is here.
DeWine said the state's two-week average COVID-19 case count per 100,000 people now stands at 155. The number "continues to come down," he said, though it still has a way to go before the state reaches 50 cases per 100,000 people — the threshold DeWine has set to lift all current state health orders. The rate is down from 179 per 100,000 a week ago. The case number per 100,000 people was as high as 845.5 in mid-December 2020. Ohio was last below 50 in June 2020.
Two counties are below the 50-case-per-100,000 rate: Vinton at 38.2 and Meigs at 43.7. Cuyahoga County is at 190.6 cases per 100,000, down from 204.8 a week ago and from 673.4 in mid-January.
The governor noted that the federal government this week announced new national guidelines for nursing home visitation, advising that facilities "should allow responsible indoor visitation for all residents, regardless of the vaccination status of the resident or visitor," though there are exceptions if outbreaks occur. (Go here for a summary on the federal guidelines.)
DeWine said Ohio is changing a health order to allow visitation at assisted-living facilities inside a resident's room. Under previous rules, visits had to take place at a different location, such as a lobby or designated visiting area.
There was more encouraging news on the return to normal lives.
For instance, DeWine said the state expects that all county fairs will be able to take place this summer, albeit with limitations on grandstand attendance (30%), and with requirements for social distancing and mask-wearing.
"It's possible that by the time we get to fair season, we may be off the health orders if things continue to go well," the governor said.
Proms will be a go this year, too, as will spring sports at all schools. He said students no longer are required to quarantine because they've had incidental exposure to COVID in the classroom, as long as they don't have symptoms and follow the appropriate sports guidance.
"We have the vaccine. We're on offense," he said, emphasizing that people "still need to play defense" by adhering to safe practices.
Also important for students and parents: DeWine said the state is making rapid testing available in K-12 schools "to increase confidence and safety in our schools. Soon we'll be shipping more than 200,000 of the at-home tests to our Educational Service Centers, and I encourage our school districts to take advantage of the resource."
DeWine during the Q&A portion of the briefing was asked about Senate Bill 22, which cleared the state House and Senate this week and curbs a governor's ability to issue health orders. He said the bill is "unconstitutional" and "clearly violates" separation of powers between the legislative and executive branches.
"I will have to veto the bill," DeWine said. "There's no governor I can think of in Ohio who would have not vetoed this bill." He added, "I would have to veto it not so much for me certainly cause we're coming out of this pandemic. But I'm very concerned about the future and health departments around the state not having the tools they need to keep the people in this state safe."
Republican leaders in the Legislature have promised to schedule a veto override vote, assuming DeWine goes ahead with the veto.
DeWine noted that Thursday's briefing was his 150th news conference since the pandemic began. The first took place on Feb. 27, 2020, when DeWine visited MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland.
The state has "moved through many stages of the pandemic" since then, DeWine said, and it's in "a much better place today," though there's still a long way to go to get all Ohioans vaccinated.
Lt. Gov. Jon Husted during the briefing was at his junior high school in Montpelier, which is now a pop-up COVID vaccination site, to get his vaccine on camera. Husted, 53, became eligible for the shot on Thursday. After getting the shot, he said, "The needle of the arm is a lot more pleasant than a swab in the nose, that's for sure."
The town's mayor was vaccinated, too. Husted's former babysitter also received the vaccine. Asked by DeWine what Husted was like as a kid, she said the now-lieutenant governor was well behaved. She then quipped, "But I have to admit they preferred my sister, because she let them stay up late and I didn't."
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