Over the last 21 days, Ohio averaged 391 cases a day. However, in the last week, Ohio is averaging 618.7 cases a day.
“After a long period of decline, the COVID-19 cases are now steadily rising again in Ohio,” ODH Chief Medical Officer Bruce Vanderhoff said Wednesday. “It appears that this surge is being driven by yet another variant, the delta variant.”
As of July 3, the delta variant was present in more than 36% of COVID detections in Ohio, he added. From May 23 to June 5 it was detected in 1.9% of cases and 15% of cases from June 6 to 19.
Hospitalizations are also beginning to show signs of an increase in Ohio.
The state recorded 52 hospitalizations in the last day compared to its 21-day average of 34.
Ohio has reported 61,377 total hospitalizations during the pandemic, according to ODH.
Unlike previous surges, the state is seeing more cases and hospitalizations with younger Ohioans, Vanderhoff said.
From October to Dec 2020, on average 12% of Ohio’s COVID cases occurred in people younger than 20. From May to June, it was up to 20%. During those same time periods, hospitalizations in Ohioans younger than 20 went from 2% to 5%.
All three coronavirus vaccines available in the U.S. protect against the virus, as well as the delta variant, Vanderhoff added.
As of Thursday, 48.68% of Ohioans have started the vaccine and 45.59% have finished it, according to the health department.
More than 5,690,345 people in the state have received at least one vaccine and 5,329,299 have completed it.
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