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Governor DeWine Press Conference Summary for Thursday January 14

Below are the updates from yesterday’s press conference with Governor DeWine and Lt. Governor Husted. The next press conference is currently scheduled for Tuesday, January 19th.

Ohio’s COVID-19 case data:
    *   714,168 confirmed cases
    *   93,125 probable cases
    *   807,293  total cases
    *   42,491 hospitalizations
    *   8,974 confirmed deaths
    *   1,016 probable deaths
    *   9,990 total deaths
    *   6,289 ICU admissions
    *   More data is available on the COVID-19 Dashboard HERE.

Governor DeWine highlighted the vaccine distribution timeline for Phase 1B of Ohio’s vaccination program, which is set to begin next week for those ages 80 and up. Please see the attached graphic for more details.

The Ohio Department of Health will launch a tool tomorrow morning on coronavirus.ohio.gov to assist residents looking for a provider that has been allotted vaccines. The tool will be searchable by zip code or county, but it will not be updated in real-time. It is critical that those eligible to receive a vaccine consult local resources to determine up-to-date vaccine availability. The Ohio Department of Health is in the process of developing a state vaccination scheduling system. Additional information is forthcoming.

Governor DeWine announced that Ohio is imminently close to completing the administration of the first round of COVID-19 vaccines in skilled nursing facilities. Ohio partnered with four pharmacies through the Federal Pharmacy Partnership in distribution of the vaccine to skilled nursing facilities. These facilities are a part of Phase 1A. Within the Federal Pharmacy Partnership, Ohio, with 3.6% of the U.S population, has administered more than 8% of the vaccines in this program nationwide.  This is above the anticipated pace of administering the vaccine.

Governor DeWine announced that Hamilton County has turned purple under Ohio’s Public Health Advisory Alert System. Clermont and Lorain counties are both on the watchlist. A county-by-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.

Lt. Governor Husted today announced the community investment from General Motors as part of the Ohio Tax Credit Authority recommendation. The agreed investment of $12 million includes:

  • $5 million to Youngstown State University for workforce development in partnership with Gateway Community College, and funding for the YSU Energy Storage Innovation and Training Center.
  • $3 million to the Village of Lordstown for the design and construction of a new water tower.
  • $2.5 million to the Eastgate Regional Council of Governments for local infrastructure improvements.
  • $1.5 million to the Mahoning Valley Manufacturers Coalition to support community workforce development.

Governor DeWine was joined earlier today by Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther, Columbus Police Chief Thomas Quinlan, Ohio National Guard Maj. Gen. John Harris, Jr., and Ohio State Highway Patrol Superintendent Col. Richard Fambro to discuss the safety measures in place for demonstrations that are expected to occur in Columbus in advance of next week's presidential inauguration. Please see the attached press release.

The Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC) urges Ohio employers to cash the checks BWC mailed them in December to mitigate the economic hardship brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. As of Tuesday, 23,351 employers still had not cashed $513.7 million in checks BWC sent last month in its $5 billion dividend for nearly 180,000 private and public employers. Please see the attached press release.

Attached are the slides that Governor DeWine used during the press conference. 

Ohioans filed 37,309 initial and 278,026 continued jobless claims last week, according to statistics the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) reported to the U.S. Department of Labor today. In addition, 30,373 Ohioans received Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) last week.

Over the last 43 weeks, ODJFS has distributed more than $7.7 billion in unemployment compensation payments to more than 895,000 Ohioans. ODJFS has also issued more than $7.6 billion in PUA payments to more than 825,000 Ohioans.

Ohioans can apply for unemployment benefits online 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at unemployment.ohio.gov. It is also possible to file by phone at 877-644-6562 or TTY at 888- 642-8203, Monday through Friday 7AM to 7PM, Saturday 9AM to 5PM, and Sunday 9AM to 1PM. Employers with questions should email UCTech@jfs.ohio.gov<mailto:UCTech@jfs.ohio.gov.

As always, Coronavirus.Ohio.Gov and the Department of Health hotline, 1-833-4-ASK-ODH are great resources for those who have questions.

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