Lorain County Updates

Lorain County reported 161 cases and 8 hospitalizations from April 23 to April 29, marking a decline from 220 cases the previous week. The reduction in cases is welcome news for the County, but health officials continue to urge caution while vaccination efforts continue.

As of April 29, 42.68 percent of the county’s population has received at least one dose of the vaccine. 

Lorain County remains classified by the Ohio Department of Health at “Red Alert Level Three” on a public emergency scale of four for “very high exposure and spread.” Level Three counties are advised to limit activities as much as possible. Lorain County must meet three benchmarks to move to a lower alert level: lower per capita case levels, lower community spread outside of congregate settings, and a lower seven-day average of new cases.

Statewide Updates

Ohio continued to experience a decline in case numbers this week. ODH reported 6,270 new statewide cases and 373 hospitalizations. Last week, Ohio had 6,598 new cases. 

In February, Governor Mike DeWine announced that when Ohio reaches a rate of 50 cases per 100,000 people over a two-week period, he will lift all COVID-19-related health orders. While Ohio has seen a drop in cases over the last two weeks, it is unlikely that the state will meet this benchmark soon. The state had 115 cases per 100,000 people this week, down from 185.7 last week.

Earlier this week the CDC released guidance stating that vaccinated and unvaccinated people can walk, run, and bike outdoors maskless. Individuals who are fully vaccinated can participate in small outdoor gatherings maskless. This change is unlikely to impact Ohio’s mask mandate because the health guidance already includes an exemption for those outside maintaining six feet of distance. ODH also released guidance this week stating that fully vaccinated people do not need to quarantine after exposure to a COVID-19 positive person. 

As of April 29, roughly 39.85 percent of Ohio residents had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. To learn more about vaccinations and sign up for an appointment, residents can use Ohio’s vaccination tool.  

More information on COVID-19 in Ohio is available through the ODH and LCPH websites, where case numbers are updated every weekday at 2 p.m.

Oberlin College Updates

This week, of the 593 tests administered, the College recorded zero new COVID-19 cases. 

As of April 26, 37 percent of campus is fully vaccinated and has uploaded documentation. Despite CDC guidance released this week about outdoor masking, the College indicated in an April 29 email to the Oberlin community that they would not consider relaxing ObieSafe restrictions until 80 percent of the campus is vaccinated. 

The College asks that students submit their vaccine documentation to the Student Health Portal and is incentivising students to upload documentation by raffling off cash prizes of up to $500. Faculty and staff should submit their documentation to Human Resources.