COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) addressed the state Wednesday, providing much-needed context for the next phase of the coronavirus pandemic.
The briefing comes just one day after Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine held his own press conference, addressing the impacts the current surge could have on schools.
ODH Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff used Tuesday's discussion as a stepping stone, talking more in-depth about school districts in the state, booster shots and the highly contagious delta variant.
DELTA VARIANT AND OHIO HOSPITALS
According to ODH, there were 3,235 new COVID-19 infections statewide Tuesday, which is roughly 1,000 more than the week prior.
There were also 220 new hospitalizations, bringing the highest single-day reporting in Ohio since Feb. 10, and setting the total number of COVID-19 patients at 1,575, another number not seen since last winter.
Between July 18-31, Vanderhoff said that delta and its sublineages made up almost 90% of all COVID-19 infections.
He told Ohioans that the delta variant is more contagious than the cold and flu, though he called it much more harmful, especially for those who are unvaccinated.
Mercer Health Director of Emergency Medicine Dr. Craig Dues said out of all the COVID-positive patients in his facilities, about 80% were not vaccinated against the virus. He noted that the other 20% of breakthrough infections among the vaccinated were in patients who recovered well and had shorter lengths of stay.
The rural county of Mercer has seen a 500% increase in testing, he said, with a positivity rate of 27% — that's up from 2.9% in June of this year.
Dues said that patients now are also presenting symptoms more rapidly, with many showing up after a day, as opposed to the previous three to four days after infection.
The good news is, Ohio hospitals still have enough beds and ventilators available, but the rapid spread of delta is cause for concern. Hospitals in other states are reporting a need to turn away elective procedures and some have had considered moving patients to beds out of state.
"The bottom line is that COVID is a very bad virus, even for our children. Without a doubt, vaccination is our best defense," Vanderhoff said Tuesday.
BOOSTER SHOTS
Also on Wednesday, U.S. health officials announced plans to offer COVID-19 booster shots to all Americans eight months after their second dose of the vaccine.
The doses could begin the week of Sept. 20, though Vanderhoff noted the plan is contingent on the FDA's independent evaluation.
If approved, Americans would get a third "booster" shot of one of the mRNA vaccines available: Pfizer or Moderna.
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the current authorized COVID-19 vaccines are remarkably effective against preventing severe illness and death, which was the goal from the beginning.
Vanderhoff explained that vaccines against respiratory viruses in general rarely protect against mild or moderate illness as well as they do against severe illness. This is because the vaccines are much better at inducing immunity in our lungs than in our noses, which is actually where respiratory viruses first impact our bodies.
Vanderhoff noted there are two studies going on: whether or not the current vaccines will be effective as a third "booster" shot, and if augmented vaccines would offer any additional advantage.
For the latter, major pharmaceutical companies are considering making tweaks to the current vaccines, using the knowledge we now have of the changing nature of the virus, including the new variants. This possibility is a way out, Vanderhoff explained, as there is a long process it must go through to be deemed both safe and effective.
Vanderhoff noted that realistically, the goal is not to get rid of the coronavirus, as coronaviruses in different forms have been around for years, but rather get to a point of immunity where we won't go through regular cycles of serious illness.
But, how do we get there?
Vanderhoff said to stop the virus from continuing to mutate, we need to get out ahead of it by stopping the spread through vaccination.
Akron Children's Hospital Pediatric Intensive Care Specialist Dr. Michael Forbes, backed up Vanderhoff's assessment, calling on those who have yet to get the COVID-19 vaccine to reconsider.
"If you are unvaccinated, the virus is more likely to use you as a lab, creating a new strand to deal with," he said.
SCHOOLS
As Ohio students prepare to go back to school, there is uncertainty.
Looking at states ahead of Ohio in the impacts of delta, some school districts have faced major outbreaks from the get-go.
As noted by DeWine on Tuesday, a school in Orlando, Florida started off its semester with masks optional. However, one week later, school leaders reported more than 470 cases among students and teachers, with more than 1,060 in isolation or quarantine. In South Carolina, the state's biggest school district was forced to return to virtual learning after just nine days of in-person classes.
"We don't want that to happen here in Ohio," Vanderhoff said.
The ODH director said that the goal is to keep Ohio kids in school five days per week, calling in-person learning "vital" to a child's development.
He said that, as seen last year, in-person education can be conducted safely, even with COVID-19, when schools have layered prevention: masking, social distancing, good ventilation, hygiene practices and vaccination in those who are eligible.
"Last spring, these practices created a very safe environment within our schools," Vanderhoff said.
He noted that when a school requires masking of everyone, regardless of vaccination status and alongside other prevention practices, students in most cases are able to forego quarantine if exposed in the classroom.
The worry is that without proper prevention, students could face a constant cycle of quarantining and returning and back again.
To be clear, no statewide mandate for schools has been issued and state leaders are unlikely to do so in the near future. Both Vanderhoff and DeWine have voiced support for a localized approach, leaving the tough decisions to the state's school districts.