WEEKLY ROUNDUP | Ohio vaccination rate ticks up as delta surges

COLUMBUS — Ohio is back to crossing grim milestones of COVID-19 spread because of the highly contagious delta variant and the state's sluggish vaccination rate.

On Wednesday, the state reported more than 1,000 new confirmed COVID-19 cases for the first time in 11 weeks.

On Thursday, Ohio's two-week rate of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people — the metric once used by Gov. Mike DeWine to target the state's reopening — surpassed 50 per 100,000 for the first time since May.

Since state leaders have started sounding the alarm about the delta variant, some unvaccinated Ohioans are heeding their warnings.

The weekly number of Ohioans receiving their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine increased for the third week in a row after reaching a low of 28,391 new doses statewide the week of July 4.

Experts are seeing this trend throughout the country. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data shows nearly 800,000 shots were recorded nationwide July 25, the highest single-day total in weeks.

COVID-19 trends in Ohio

Between July 25 and July 31, the state reported:

• 5,472 new confirmed cases, up from 3,032 the week before;
• 444 new hospitalizations, up from 322;
• 20 COVID-19 deaths, down from 30;
• 58,816 Ohioans have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, up from 48,114.

As of July 31:

• 5,765,696 Ohioans have started to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, including:
  • 109,386 in Mahoning County, an increase of 1,033;
  • 90,210 in Trumbull, an increase of 996;
  • 39,255 in Columbiana, an increase of 396.
• 49.33 percent of the state population has received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Mahoning Valley counties continue to lag behind the state rate.
  • Mahoning County: 47.83 percent;
  • Trumbull County: 45.57 percent;
  • Columbiana County: 38.53 percent.

From last week:

• The Western Reserve Transit Authority on Thursday approved a $590,121 federal allocation to keep transportation services for Trumbull County's senior and disabled residents running through next year. But without a dedicated revenue stream — such as the new sales tax to fund an expansion of Western Reserve Transit Authority, which county commissioners opted not to bring before voters in the region — and with less federal funding expected next year, county officials likely will have to go back to the well to keep the wheels turning.

• According to an internal document from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the coronavirus delta variant is as contagious as the chickenpox and is more transmissible than the viruses that cause Ebola, the common cold and the seasonal flu. "I think people need to understand that we're not crying wolf here," CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told CNN. "This is serious."

• Gov. Mike DeWine announced a new vaccine incentive program Wednesday as the delta variant causes a spike in the state's COVID-19 cases. Under the program, state employees will receive $100 for getting the coronavirus vaccine, and their spouses will receive $25 if they also get vaccinated. As of Thursday, only about 46 percent of Ohioans were fully vaccinated.

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reversed course Tuesday on some masking guidelines, recommending that even vaccinated people return to wearing masks indoors in parts of the U.S. where the coronavirus is surging. Citing new information about the ability of the delta variant to spread among vaccinated people, the CDC also recommended indoor masks for all teachers, staff, students and visitors to schools, regardless of vaccination status.

• "This is how I'm going to die, defending this entrance," Capitol Police Officer Aquilino Gonell recalled thinking, testifying at the emotional opening hearing of the congressional panel investigating the violent Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection. He and three other officers gave their accounts of the attack Tuesday, sometimes wiping away tears, sometimes angrily rebuking Republicans who have resisted the probe and embraced Trump's downplaying the day's violence by supporters who were challenging his election defeat. Along with graphic video of hand-to-hand fighting, the officers described being beaten as they held off the mob that broke through windows and doors and interrupted the certification of Democrat Joe Biden's presidential win.

• Groups including the American Medical Association are calling for hospitals and long-term care facilities to make a COVID-19 vaccine mandatory for employees as the delta variant continues to spread and vaccination rates lag. More than 50 professional societies and organizations signed a statement last Monday urging health care and long-term care employers to require workers to get a vaccine, calling it the "logical fulfillment of the ethical commitment" those who work in health care make to keep patients safe.

• Ohio Department of Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff last Monday described the state's back-to-school guidance for mitigating COVID-19 spread. It consists of three recommendations: that eligible people get vaccinated, unvaccinated people mask up and schools implement safety measures, like distancing. Notably absent from the guidance were mandates, leaving the masking decisions up to school districts. Last month, Columbus City Schools and Cleveland Metropolitan School District announced masks will be mandatory. But here in the Mahoning Valley, districts aren't ready to make those calls.

• Lordstown Motors Corp., which for months has warned of a cash crunch that could cause it to close its doors next year, announced a new multimillion-dollar hedge fund investment last Monday. The company announced it entered into a three-year equity purchase agreement with YA II PN Ltd., a fund managed by Yorkville Global Advisors Global LP of New Jersey, for $400 million in Class A common stock purchases. It's "the first step taken by the new leadership at Lordstown to ensure the company has the financing it needs to continue in the long-term," said spokesperson Kimberly Spell.

This story was originally published August 2, 2021 at 4:00 AM with the headline "WEEKLY ROUNDUP | Ohio vaccination rate ticks up as delta surges."