Ohio 's Republican Gov Mike DeWine has issued a three-week curfew on businesses as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations surge to rec...
Ohio's Republican Gov Mike DeWine has issued a three-week curfew on businesses as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations surge to record highs across the state.
The curfew, which will take effect from Thursday, means retail businesses will have to close between 10pm to 5am every night for 21 days.
Grocery stores and pharmacies are exempt from the curfew shutdown.
Restaurants must close for indoor dining by 10pm but can remain open after the curfew for takeout and delivery.
Violation of the curfew could result in a $750 fine.
DeWine said the measure was needed to reduce cases and stop the state's hospitals from being overrun.
Ohio's Republican Gov Mike DeWine has issued a three-week curfew on businesses as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations surge to record highs across the state
There has been a sharp uptick in cases and hospitalizations in Ohio since mid-October. Deaths are also now increasing
He said the retail business curfew, paired with increased mask-wearing, could help reduce the contact people have with each other by 20 to 25 percent.
The Republican governor also urged residents to reduce their daily contact with others and to remain home as much as they can after 10pm.
'We're going to try it for 21 days, to see how we're doing,' he said.
'That is going to go a ways to keep our hospitals from being overrun, it's going to keep our kids in school, it's going to keep our loved ones who are in nursing homes safe.'
There has been a sharp uptick in cases and hospitalizations in Ohio since mid-October.
Deaths are also now increasing across the state.
It took five months to record the first 100,000 cases in Ohio. The state has now added 100,000 in just the last three weeks.
Daily case tallies have increased by 17 percent in the past week, while total hospitalizations have surged at least 25 percent
Ohio hospital and intensive care admissions are at record highs with more than 3,600 people hospitalized as of Monday.
There were also more than 7,200 confirmed cases, which is down from the record 8,000 reported on November 13.
Daily case tallies have increased by 17 percent in the past week, while total hospitalizations have surged at least 25 percent.
Lt. Governor Jon Husted said the latest restrictions were not a shutdown, but were necessary to slow the spread.
'It took five months to record our first 100,000 COVID diagnoses in Ohio. Now, Ohio has added 100,000-plus COVID cases in just three weeks,' he said.
'As a result, in the past 21 days hospitals have seen an increase from 1,456 COVID patients to more than 3,500 COVID patients. Hospitals are now slowing or postponing elective surgeries to accommodate the increasing number of COVID patients.
'Doing nothing is not an option. Personal responsibility and accountability. Shared responsibility. We don’t need to shut down, but we do need to slow down.'
It took five months to record the first 100,000 cases in Ohio. The state has now added 100,000 in just the last three weeks. Pictured above is a nurse administering a COVID-19 test at the Ohio State Expo Center and Fairgrounds in Columbus
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