Health expert says Ohio’s COVID-19 response lacked innovation, teeth

YOUNGSTOWN — Ohio started out strong in its response to the pandemic, Toledo native Dr. Vin Gupta said Tuesday morning.

"Gov. Mike DeWine under the advisement of [former Ohio Department of Health Director] Dr. Amy Acton really nailed it by shutting down early," said Gupta. "What was done wrong was peeling back some of that initial momentum."

Gupta, a public health expert and lung doctor, shared his insights into the state's response to the coronavirus pandemic and discussed ideas on moving forward more effectively Tuesday during a zoom news conference.

He said Ohio's coronavirus response needs more innovation, especially when it comes to coronavirus testing.

In places like Washington state, the government has partnered with Amazon to establish a home testing service. The turnaround time for test results is about 24 hours. Meanwhile, in Ohio, the state has struggled to meet projected goals for testing. For tests administered at labs throughout the state, Ohioans are still waiting multiple days for results.

Gupta added the patchwork mask mandate was among Ohio's most damaging missteps.

After waffling on a mask mandate from April until July, DeWine ordered people living in counties in Level 3 "red" of the state's COVID-19 risk reporting system to wear masks. He did not issue a statewide order until July 23.

"It was concerning that our leaders fundamentally don't understand that the threat doesn't behave, doesn't adhere to county borders," Gupta said.

For a mask mandate to be effective, the mandate should punish people who don't wear masks with a fine.

Gupta brought up the situation Miami, a COVID-19 hotspot, where people who don't wear masks in public can be faced with a $100 fine. In Miami-Dade County, police and code enforcement officers issue the tickets.

"Cooperation with public health policies increases with the threat of a fine," said Gupta. "We've done it with smoking. We've done it with seatbelts. We've done it with drunk driving in Ohio."

But, as Mahoning Matters has reported, the process of litigating mask order violations is complicated. It's the job of overworked local health departments who lack the power to issue citations.

To Gupta, the mandate's lack of teeth translates to its effectiveness.

According to an Aug. 31 survey, only between 35 and 39 percent of Ohioans reported always wearing a mask when leaving home.

"We need to issue citations $50 if you're not wearing a mask ... just like we do for parking tickets," said Gupta. "What we're doing right now is just not working."