Ohio moves into next COVID-19 vaccine phase: age 60 and older, people with certain conditions and professions
Jessie Balmert Jackie Borchardt
COLUMBUS – About 941,000 more Ohioans will be eligible to obtain a COVID-19 vaccine starting Thursday.
On Monday, Gov. Mike DeWine announced that Ohioans ages 60 and older and those with certain conditions or professions that put them at risk of contracting COVID-19 can get a shot as soon as this week.
About 246,000 people comprise phase 1C, which includes professions and health conditions:
Those with Type 1 diabetes.
Pregnant women.
Bone marrow transplant recipients.
Those with Lou Gehrig's disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or ALS.
Law enforcement and corrections officers, including active duty police officers with at least 20 hours of service, corrections staff, including probation and parole staff and firefighters with an active certificate.
Retired, reserve or "special" forces are not included but volunteer firefighters are included.
Child care services employees, including teachers, administrators and substitutes enrolled in Ohio's Professional Registry who currently work in child care and pre-Kindergarten programs.
Funeral services employees, including embalmers and morticians, funeral home directors, crematory operators and apprentices.
Ohioans age 60 and older are in phase 2, which includes about 695,000 Ohioans and can also access the vaccine starting Thursday.
Other at-risk conditions, such as cancer or chronic kidney disease, were not included in the new list. Professions, such as restaurant workers or grocery store employees, haven't been given a date either.
That's because Ohio's rollout has prioritized age over professions and conditions, including ones that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has indicated are high risk.
"We believe that age is still the best indicator," DeWine said. "We've made some exceptions when we thought there was a compelling case that an individual was at very significant risk."
Ohioans on the list can schedule their appointment starting now, but different providers might have different policies on when they start taking appointments. DeWine has asked vaccine providers to start scheduling two weeks out to open up slots for more Ohioans.
Ohio receives record number of COVID-19 vaccines
Ohio is able to expand access to more residents because of an influx in new vaccines prompted by the recent federal approval of the Johnson & Johnson one-dose shot.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration signed off on Johnson & Johnson's one-dose vaccine Saturday. Nationwide, the company expects to send 4 million vaccines this week, 20 million during March and another 80 million by the end of June.
Ohio will receive 96,100 doses of Johnson & Johnson vaccine this week. Adding that to the Pfizer and Moderna doses, Ohio will receive more than 448,000 this week.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine will also be distributed to independent pharmacies, which should improve accessibility to the shot. More than 1,200 locations now provide the vaccines, DeWine said.
Can Ohioans pick which shot they want? Probably not.
Each vaccine – Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson – is effective against the virus so Ohioans shouldn't worry about which one they'll receive, Ohio's chief medical officer Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff said. "The best vaccine to get is the one that is available."
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine was shown to be 72% effective against mild symptoms and 86% against severe and critical illness in a trial in the USA. The vaccine was 100% effective in preventing death and hospitalization during the trial.
All but 8 school districts return to in-person classes
All but eight school districts have met DeWine's March 1 deadline to return to in-person classes.
Over the past month, Ohio has vaccinated about 200,000 K-12 teachers and staff with the goal of returning students to classrooms. DeWine offered vaccines to 334,000 school staff. That would be an uptake of about 60%.
Of those eight districts, seven will return in the next few weeks, DeWine said. "We're very, very happy about it."
Those not meeting the deadline for all buildings include: Akron City, Cincinnati City, Columbus City, Cleveland Municipal City, Garfield Heights City, Jefferson Township Local in Montgomery County, Richmond Heights Local and Youngstown City.
Ohio reports 1,452 new COVID-19 cases, 49 deaths
Ohio reported 1,452 new COVID-19 cases and 49 deaths on Monday.
Both numbers were below the 21-day averages of 2,225 COVID-19 cases and 269 deaths, respectively, according to Ohio Department of Health data. Cumulatively, the state has reported 968,874 cases and 17,346 people have died due to COVID-19.
Ohio added 103 COVID-19 patients, including 14 in intensive care units during that time. On Monday, Ohio hospitals reported 1,181 COVID-19 patients, including 295 people in intensive care units.
The daily patient count averaged 1,727 in February, down from 3,619 in January and 4,887 during December.
As of Monday, 1,687,834 people – about 14.44% of the state's population – had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. At least 912,354 people, about 7.8% of Ohio's population, had received both doses.
USA Today contributed to this article.