COLUMBUS — About 2,000 child care centers in Ohio have been approved so far under a special “pandemic” license.
The centers will be the only ones allowed to open Thursday to care for the children of first responders, health care workers, children service workers, and other workers deemed essential.
“The priority will be given to health care employees — so, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, psychiatrists and other support staff — as well as priority given to critical safety personnel,” said Kim Hall, director of the Department of Job and Family Services, which regulates public and private childcare centers in Ohio.
Hear the complete interview with Kim Hall
So far, Ohio has more than 700 cases of the new virus and 10 deaths.
Local and county health departments in central Ohio report a total of 111 cases in Franklin and all of its surrounding counties.
Two of the coronavirus-related deaths in Ohio are in Franklin County.
Gov. Mike DeWine’s administration is preparing to crack down on at least one workplace that is not abiding by a provision of the state’s stay-at-home order requiring businesses that have been deemed essential and allowed to remain open to follow safety and hygiene rules, such as maintaining a safe distance between workers, requiring frequent hand-washing and regularly cleaning the facility.
If they fail to adhere to the rule, Lt. Gov. Jon Husted says they will be ordered to close.
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Husted also reassured Ohioans that the state’s website for applying for unemployment compensation benefits was running smoothly despite complaints. Husted says the site was swamped with approximately 400,000 inquiries on Tuesday.