COLUMBUS – Governor Mike DeWine is facing increasing pressure from lawmakers, including some of his fellow Republicans, and business owners to restart some nonessential work around the state even while Ohio continues to see new case and new deaths from the COVID-19 virus.
As we reopen #Ohio, people will have to be very, very careful until we get a vaccine. You'll have to weigh benefit vs. risk. You will have to make sure you're wearing a mask when you go out, continue social distancing, etc. #COVID19 is not going away until we get a vaccine.
— Governor Mike DeWine (@GovMikeDeWine) April 14, 2020
Much of the cry is coming in areas of the state with few confirmed cases of the coronavirus, where some lawmakers are suggesting that reopening businesses should be decided on a county-by-county basis.
DeWine says his administration is working on what steps are needed to gradually get people back to work. But he says protecting Ohioans is his first priority.
“We have to be as deliberate and careful and thoughtful about getting out of this as we were when we had to make the decisions to close things down,” he said during his daily Statehouse briefing Tuesday.
After a month in crisis mode, governors across the U.S. are trying to decide when and how to lift restrictions. This week, two separate groups of states, in the Northeast and along the West Coast, announced compacts to work together on lifting shelter-in-place restrictions and reopening some businesses.
RELATED: OSU researchers try potential new treatment
If people are too afraid to shop or dine out, there is not much point to reopening businesses, and when they are open again, things will still be different than they were before the pandemic.
There are nearly 7,300 confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 in Ohio and 324 deaths.
So far, Ohio has avoided a massive outbreak like those that have crippled some cities elsewhere but DeWine and health director Dr. Amy Acton both say that the fight is a long way from over.
“We’re hearing from the scientists that we could see ongoing spikes until we have a vaccine,” which is a year to 18 months away, Acton said.
“Until there is a vaccine, this monster, as I’ve referred to it is going to be lurking around us,” DeWine said.
Acton says it looks like Ohioans have “flattened the curve” – brought the spread of the virus almost to a standstill — but she and DeWine both suggest residents may be wearing face masks in public until the end of the year.
-0-
As it has been to the rest of the economy, the impact of the slowdown due to the pandemic has been painful for non-profit organizations and governments, according to two new companion surveys.
The second survey of its kind conducted by the United Way of Central Ohio and the Human Service Chamber of Franklin County with the market research firm Illuminology found that only 20 percent of 89 nonprofit organizations that offer nearly 1,000 programs were operating as they did before the crisis one month later.
Many local nonprofits have eliminated a significant part of their workforce and lost revenue from cancelled fundraising events is estimated to be over $8 million
A survey of local governments conducted by the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission indicated that, by April 6, only 10 percent of the governments had laid off or furloughed personnel but more than 70 percent are either anticipating layoffs or furloughs or are unsure about the need for those measures.
Many local government employees – like safety forces, refuse collection, and maintenance crews – must work outside of their homes in order to perform their key functions. For nonessential employees, that raises the specter of unemployment
The top three changes listed by local governments included closing all facilities to the public, conducting remote public meetings and limiting all transactions, such as bill payments, permit and service requests, and filings to remote options.
The top three concerns were staff members contracting the coronavirus, reduction in revenues and the broad health, safety, social and economic impacts on their communities.