COLUMBUS, Ohio — The COVID-19 case rate per 100,000 residents in Ohio dropped below 100 this week for the first time since the state announced the metric would guide its reopening plan, officials said.
There’s also a lot less red on Ohio’s Public Advisory Map this week, further indicating a slow down in the spread of COVID-19.
The northern part of the state has been seeing the highest rates of infections, according to officials, and transmission in the Cleveland-area continues to be a concern.
Cuyahoga County reported 1,816 COVID-19 cases in the previous two weeks and a case rate of 147, the fifth highest of Ohio’s 88 counties.
The average number of cases per capita dropped to 97.1 per 100,000 residents from 119.9 last week.
Gov. Mike DeWine announced March 4 he would lift all health orders in Ohio when the case rate fell below 50. On May 12, the governor said Ohioans have put up with the health orders for long enough. He set an expiration date for fully reopening Ohio that is no longer tied to the case rate.
Since then, the governor has repeatedly said his administration believes Ohio is still on track to have a case rate around 50 when the health orders expire. The metric has been declining since April 15 when the state reported a case rate of 200.
On the color map, there are 14 yellow counties this week — the most since late October, according to the Ohio Department of Health.
The map, established last July, uses a four-level scale to show where the spread of the virus is of most concern.
Yellow Alert Level 1 is the lowest rate whereas Purple Alert Level 4 is the highest.
There are currently no counties in purple or on the verge of going into Level 4.
The number of counties at Orange Alert Level 2 increased by three, bringing the total to 57, and 27 counties were in Red Alert Level 3.
While Ohio gets set to reopen, the medical community is cautioning that the health crisis isn’t over.
The state’s data shows 781 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Friday, reflecting a 10% drop in the past 60 days. The numbers are much improved, however, from a mid-December peak above 5,300.
On Friday, 231 patients with COVID-19 were being treated in Ohio’s intensive-care units, a 2% increase over the past 60 days.
Populous northern Ohio counties reported case rates above the statewide average for the previous two weeks — Summit: 122.4 (662 cases), Lucas: 139.4 (597 cases), Stark: 145.2 (538 cases) and Mahoning County: 150 (343 cases).
The largest counties in central and southern Ohio reported lower case rates — Franklin: 103 (1,356 cases), Hamilton: 77.8 (636 cases) and Montgomery: 95.5 (508 cases).
Ohio reported 81 deaths Friday bringing the total to 19,709. This week, Ohio added 181 deaths, the most weekly deaths in three weeks after the stated added 100 deaths last week and 144 deaths the week prior.
June 2020 was the last time the state had a 50 per 100,000 cases-to-residents ratio, according to state data.
The highest case rates in Ohio this week were reported in neighboring counties near the Pennsylvania border — Belmont: 158.2 (106 cases) and Harrison: 152.9 (23 cases).
Case rates are also elevated in the northwest part of the state along the Michigan and Indiana borders, where Defiance and Lucas counties reported case rates in the top 10 of Ohio’s counties.
Perry County has the lowest case rate in the state at 33.2 per 100,000 residents.
