Ohio’s two-week average of reported coronavirus cases has dropped below 50 cases per 100,000 residents, hitting a goal previously tied to when many state health orders would be lifted, according to the Ohio Department of Health.
In the two weeks from May 22 to June 4, the statewide average of cases per 100,000 residents was 49.5 cases.
At the height of the pandemic, around the end of November and early December 2020, that average was more than 900 cases per 100,000 residents. Specifically, an average of 939.1 cases per 100,000 people were reported from Nov. 30 to Dec. 13, 2020.
Originally, Gov. Mike DeWine set a goal of 50 cases per 100,000 people for two weeks for the state to lift its public health orders, including the mask mandate.
Instead, the governor later announced the state would set a specific date and time of 12 a.m. on June 2 to lift mandates.
More than 5.3 million Ohioans have received at least one vaccine, ODH said, making up 45.9% of all residents and 40.5% of all adults in the state. Of those, 4.7 million are fully vaccinated.
In the release, Gov. Mike DeWine said hitting this milestone showed that vaccinations were working, but added “that doesn’t mean we can let our foot off the gas.”
He urged unvaccinated people to get the vaccine, and both he and ODH urged unvaccinated people to continue to wear masks in public.
