COLUMBUS – The first deadline for Ohioans to enter the $2 million Ohio Vax-2-School vaccine incentive program.
Under the Ohio Vax-2-School program, the state will award 150 scholarships worth, $10,000 each and five $100,000 grand prize scholarships and to be eligible for all prize drawings, Ohioans between 5 and 25 years of age, or their parents or guardians, can register as soon as the first dose of the vaccine has been administered. The fist registration deadline is Sunday, Nov. 21.
The initial cutoff for the scholarship drawings comes days before Thanksgiving and in the midst of an upsurge in new COVID-19 cases Ohio Department of Health director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff attributes to the highly contagious delta variant of the novel coronavirus experiencing a “second wind.”
The 6,615 new cases reported Thursday was more than 50% higher than the three-week and at a level comparable to that seen in early October, Vanderhoff said.
“These numbers are, quite simply, going in the wrong direction…more people are getting sick and more are being hospitalized,” Vanderhoff said in a briefing Thursday.
The number of hospital admissions due to COVID-19 has increased 23% in the last three weeks, he said.
The Ohio Vax-2-School program awards 150 scholarships worth, $10,000 each and five $100,000 grand prize scholarships.
Key dates in the Ohio Vax-2-School program:
- Nov. 21, 11:59 p.m. – deadline to be eligible for all drawings
- Nov. 28 – deadline to be eligible for the second drawing and the grand prize
- Nov.29 – Dec. 3 – daily drawings for 150 $10,000 scholarships
- Dec. 1, 11:59 p.m. – deadline to be eligible for the grand prize drawing.
- Dec. 3, 7:29 pm. – grand prize (5 $100,000 scholarships) drawing
Scholarships are awarded in Ohio’s 529 College Advantage plans and can be used at colleges, universities, technical and trade schools, or career program in Ohio.
Kids lining up
The state says almost 86,000 kids age 5 to 11 — or 8.6% of those eligible — have gotten at least one shot of the vaccine since the shots became available for the younger children and, nationwide, the White House says about 10% of eligible kids in that age group have received a dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, more than three times faster than the rate adults were vaccinated 11 months ago.
As of Wednesday, nearly 220,000 Ohio children have contracted COVID-19 and 16 Ohioans under age 18 have died, the health department reported.
A CDC advisory panel was scheduled to discuss Friday expanding eligibility for COVID-19 vaccine booster shots to all adults today, which could make the shots available as early as this weekend.
Ohio House Republicans approve anti-vaccine mandate legislation
House Republicans on Thursday approved anti-vaccine mandate legislation that would prohibit private companies and public entities from requiring proof of COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of entering facilities or conducting business.
The measure would also ban schools from restricting students’ activities based on their vaccination status and require hospitals to accommodate intensive care workers who don’t get the vaccine.
The GOP-controlled House voted in favor of the bill along party lines Thursday after a committee vote hours earlier.
Commerce and Labor Committee Chairman Dick Stein (R-Norwalk) said the legislation was about personal choice and individual freedom.
But, Democratic opponents, including two central Ohio lawmakers, say it makes it more difficult to respond to the pandemic.
“We should be focusing our energy on protecting people from COVID-19, not undermining public health recommendations. This bill panders to extremist groups and conspiracy theorists who have led the charge in pushing anti-vaccine bills,” Rep. Beth Liston (D-Dublin) said.
As long as we keep going down this road, the pandemic will continue, more people will die unnecessarily, and Ohio will be slow to recover,” Rep. Allison Russo (D-Upper Arlington) said.
The bill goes next to the Senate.