National Guard Can Vaccinate All Ohioans

COLUMBUS, OH — The Ohio National Guard will be allowed to help vaccinate the general populace against COVID-19.

Health and Human Services gave the Ohio National Guard a waiver allowing them to administer COVID-19 vaccines to the general Ohio populace.

Major General John Harris said members of the Ohio National Guard will begin receiving doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, clearing the way for them to assist in vaccinating all Ohioans. There is not yet a concrete plan for how to use the Guard in distributing the vaccine.

Gov. Mike DeWine said Monday he foresees using the Guard to bring the COVID-19 vaccine to under-served and hard-to-reach parts of Ohio.

Don't miss the latest updates from health and government officials in Ohio on the coronavirus. Sign up for Patch newsletters and news alerts.

Avoid a Christmas Surge

With Christmas days away, health officials have now determined that many Ohioans refrained from attending large celebrations during Thanksgiving. The decision to mostly stay home led to a plateauing, and perhaps even a decrease, in new COVID-19 cases.

But another holiday will soon be celebrated in the Buckeye State.

"It’s critical that we keep up the work we started during Thanksgiving for the next several weeks to prevent another surge in January. If we can get through Christmas and New Year’s without a significant surge, we will be much better positioned to start 2021 against this virus," DeWine said.

Monday's COVID-19 Numbers

Ohio's COVID-19 numbers continue to decline, according to state health department data. In the past 24 hours, officials confirmed 6,548 new COVID-19 cases among Ohioans. That's the second-fewest cases confirmed in a day over the past three weeks. It also continues a four-day decline in COVID-19 cases.

Deaths and hospitalizations related to the virus were also below their rolling average on Monday.

"We have 17 counties with a case rate over 1,000, meaning that at least 1% of the people in these counties currently have or very recently had the virus and are at risk of spreading it to others. Only four counties in Ohio have a case rate below 500," DeWine said.

Here are all of Monday's numbers:

• New cases: 6,548
• New deaths: 75
• New hospitalizations: 301
• New ICU admissions: 37

More reading:

• Given Just Hours To Live, Woman Recovering From Coronavirus
• Stress, Bullying Among Parents' Concerns During Pandemic: Survey
• 7 Stories From America's Coronavirus Graveyard: Deaths Pass 300K