For the past week, Ohio’s Public Health Advisory System indicated Franklin County was on the Level 4 health advisory watch list, which would signal severe virus exposure and spread.
Now, Franklin County becomes the first in the state with the distinction.
The change was announced Thursday, November 19 during one of Ohio Governor Mike DeWine’s biweekly coronavirus press conferences.
“Other counties may not yet be seeing continuous, uninterrupted increases in the same way as Franklin County, but make no mistake – almost all counties are seeing more cases and more healthcare use that could threaten the medical system if they continue,” said Governor DeWine.
According to the Public Health Advisory System, Franklin County has met six out of seven indicators since last week’s report. What changed this week is a significant increase in new cases per capita in the last two weeks — from 419.06 cases to 553.10 cases per 100,000 residents.
Other indicators, such as the portion of cases not in a congregate setting and hospital admissions, are down from earlier this month. However, both indicators for virus severity and spread are still being met, according to the dashboard.
675 cases were newly reported in Franklin County on Wednesday, November 18.
For more information on COVID-19 in Central Ohio, visit columbus.gov/coronavirus.