TOLEDO, Ohio — Three days after setting a new high for COVID-19 cases, Ohio topped the record by almost 1,000 cases on Tuesday.
Ohio reported 6,508 new cases this afternoon. But more shockingly, the state reported 386 new hospitalizations, obliterating the previous one-day high of 231.
The state now has 2,747 hospitalized COVID patients, 656 in the ICU, and 327 on ventilators. All of those totals are new highs. On Sept. 26, there were 625 patients in Ohio hospitals, 205 in the ICU, and 95 on ventilators.
The dramatic numbers were announced hours after Gov. Mike DeWine said that he would address Ohioans tomorrow evening. The last time that the governor talked to Ohioans in an evening address was on July 15, when he expressed concerns about spiking cases and hospitalizations. At the time, the state had 1,027 in the hospital and 316 in the ICU and 146 on ventilators. In that address, he urged Ohioans to wear masks and socially distance.
That strategy has not been working. What contact tracers have discovered is that residents are wearing masks and mostly maintaining safe distances in store, school, and work settings. However, people are not being cautious when they are with family and friends.
It's unclear if the governor is prepared to take strong action tomorrow night. But Monday afternoon, the state's medical leaders held a news conference and were unanimous in agreeing that a lockdown would likely not be effective because you cannot legislate "personal responsibility."
But they also agreed that the surge in patients is taxing hospitals, not because the state is running out of space but because it is running out of medical workers. Numerous doctors, nurses, and pharmacists have been sidelined by infection or after being exposed to an infected individual. It has made it increasingly difficult to handle the influx of new patients. In the past two days, the state has added nearly 500 patients to its hospital census count.
When reached Tuesday afternoon, a member of the Toledo-Lucas County health department said that the department is weighing possible new restrictions for the area.