COVID-19 Alert - January 21

By the Numbers:

• Individuals Tested: 8,622,872

• Individuals Vaccinated (Started): Unknown, state website down

• Total Cases: 849,704

• Case Increase in Last 24-Hour Period: 7,271

• 21 Day Reported Case Average: 7,111

• Total Deaths: 10,518

• Deaths Reported in Last 24-Hour Period: 109

• 21 Day Reported Death Average: 74

• Total Hospitalizations: 44,315

• Hospitalization Increase in Last 24-Hour Period: 306

• 21 Day Reported Hospitalizations Average: 285

• Total ICU Admissions: 6,465

• ICU Admissions Increase in Last 24-Hour Period: 35

• 21 Day Reported ICU Admissions Average: 28

County-by-County Update:

• A county breakdown outlining the presence of COVID-19 in all of Ohio's 88 counties can be found on the Ohio Public Health Advisory System's website. No county has worsened this week.

Vaccination Update:

• This week

  • Beginning this week, Ohioans aged 80+ are receiving the COVID-19 vaccination. Each provider will begin administering vaccines the day after they receive their shipment. All vaccines must be distributed within seven days.

• Next week

  • Beginning next week, vaccinations are anticipated to begin for those ages 75 and up. Vaccinations will also be available to those with severe congenital, developmental, or early-onset medical disorders, and who have a developmental or intellectual disability.

  • A representative from the local county developmental disabilities board will reach out to help coordinate receipt of the vaccination for Ohioans with severe congenital, developmental, or early-onset medical disorders, as well as a developmental or intellectual disability.

State to Purchase 2 M Rapid Tests:

• Governor DeWine announced that the state is purchasing 2 million at-home, rapid COVID-19 test using telehealth services where the results are delivered in minutes without the need to send the test to a lab for processing. Developed by Abbott, BinaxNOW is an easy-to-use antigen test that detects the virus when people are most infectious.

• To facilitate the delivery of the BinaxNOW test to the home and the guided collection and testing process, Abbott has partnered with digital health solutions provider eMed™, who will deliver people their results through Abbott’s complementary NAVICA™app in a matter of minutes. eMed™ will report the rapid test results in the electronic lab reporting system.

Curfew Extended:

• The Ohio Department of Health will extend Ohio's 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew. Additional details will be forthcoming.

• The curfew does not apply to those going to and 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 the pharmacy. Picking up carry-out or a drive-thru meal and ordering for delivery is permitted, but serving food and drink within an establishment must cease at 10:00 p.m.

Rampant Unemployment Fraud:

• Unfortunately, identity theft is a nationwide problem and no state is immune. Many who did not apply for unemployment benefits, may receive a 1099 form from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, indicating that they are likely a victim of identity theft and their personal information was used to file a fraudulent claim.

• Here is what they can do:

  • Report identity theft at unemployment.ohio.gov, and click on the red button that says “ID Theft: What to do” to report suspected identity theft. ODJFS will send a confirmation email with resources available to victims of identity theft.

  • File your taxes following guidance regarding identity theft from the IRS and the Ohio Department of Taxation.

  • Protect your identity from future fraud by consulting resources from the Ohio Attorney General, the Ohio Department of Public Safety, and the Federal Trade Commission.

Home Depot Gives State PPE Donation:

• Home Depot donated 250,000 disposable masks to the state, which adds to the millions of masks, gowns, gloves, face shields and sanitizer donated by organizations ranging from large national companies and foundations to small Ohio businesses. The donated supplies are added to the State’s stockpile and distributed around the state as needed.

InnovateOhio & OBM Duplicate Payment Tool:

• The Lt. Governor provided an update on InnovateOhio’s Duplicate Payment tool, which is a project developed with the Office of Budget and Management that identifies duplicate payments in the state government accounting system. Today, an additional 72 duplicate payments were identified, totaling $168,277 in savings, using the InnovateOhio Duplicate Payment Tool.

• Since the project’s launch, it has identified $1.37 million in savings. Today’s update brings the total number of confirmed duplicate payments to 258 since January 2019, across 33 different agencies, boards and commissions.