COLUMBUS, Ohio — One day after announcing that he and his wife were both exposed to COVID-19, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine held a press conference to address the matter.
According to DeWine, both he and his wife, Fran, have tested negative for COVID-19 after being exposed to two staff members who have tested positive. Mike and Fran DeWine have each been vaccinated and received boosters for COVID-19 and the two staff members who tested positive had also been vaccinated.
Following the exposure, Ohio's Governor and First Lady will continue to be tested on a daily basis, DeWine said.
In addition to his recent COVID-19 exposure, DeWine discussed the following topics at Thursday's press conference (which can be re-watched in the video player above and YouTube player below):
- According to DeWine, the Delta Variant of COVID-19 hit Ohio later than most states and resulted in October being the sixth deadliest month in the state since the start of the pandemic in March 2020. Ohio suffered 1,264 COVID-19-related deaths in October -- a number that could still grow with deaths being a lagging indicator.
- DeWine noted that appointments are now being scheduled for children between the ages of 5-11 to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The state will track these vaccination totals through its online dashboard, both by the specific age group and the overall population.
- While many are ready to be done with the COVID-19 pandemic, DeWine noted that the pandemic is not done with us. He did, however, say that Ohio is trending in a positive direction and could be in a much better place in about a month.
- DeWine stressed that the COVID-19 vaccine is the key for Ohio to escape the pandemic.
- While he supports the COVID-19 vaccine, DeWine said that he does not support legislation from President Joe Biden requiring private businesses with more than 100 employees to implement COVID-19 vaccine mandates. He also said that he doesn't support legislation currently proposed in Ohio that would ban employers from implementing vaccine mandates.
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