Oberlin College Updates

Between Nov. 8–Nov. 23, the College’s internal testing documented two positive COVID-19 cases among students. Between Nov. 8 – Nov. 28, the College was notified of zero new COVID-19 cases from outside testing.

Earlier this week, the College announced they would begin reporting hospitalization data as another metric to monitor the spread and severity of COVID-19. There are no hospitalizations as of Dec. 2.

“If [vaccines] stop being effective, and people end up in the hospital, new protocols will have to be enforced,” wrote the ObieSafe team in a Dec. 1 Campus Digest email. “That is why the hospitalization numbers from campus are far more important than case totals or positivity rates, although that data is useful as well.”

As of Nov. 1, 98.8 percent of students, 96.6 percent of faculty, and 90.5 percent of staff have been fully vaccinated. The CDC is recommending that all those 18 and older who are six months past their original vaccine series of Moderna or Pfizer or two months past their Johnson & Johnson vaccine should receive a booster shot as soon as possible. Students who received their booster shot can reupload their vaccine card to the Student Health Portal, and faculty and staff can upload their card via the form on Oberview.

Lorain County Updates

Lorain County’s COVID-19 caseload has been decreasing over the last month. From Nov. 2 – Dec. 2, the county reported 5,017 positive cases and 254 hospitalizations.

Northeast Ohio is currently experiencing some of the largest numbers of COVID-19 cases in the state, according to Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff. However, Oberlin’s zip code has some of the lowest numbers, with two cases per 1,000 people compared to just over four cases per 1,000 people in the county.

As of yesterday, 61.89 percent of Lorain County residents have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and 57.21 percent have been fully vaccinated.

Ohio Updates

After experiencing a decline in COVID-19 cases, Ohio is once again seeing a spike in cases. Between Nov. 2 – Dec. 2, the state of Ohio recorded 147,913 new cases and 5,563 hospitalizations. Numbers have now risen to near-peak levels from earlier this fall. Vanderhoff predicts that cases will continue to rise, as holiday travel and gatherings contribute to the spread. Ohio is also experiencing the largest number of hospitalizations since January of this year.

Last week, South Africa announced the discovery of a new COVID-19 variant called the Omicron variant. Little is known about the severity and transmission rate of this new variant, but as of Thursday, eight cases have been identified in the United States: one case each in California, Colorado, and Minnesota; and five cases in New York.

Ohio public health officials assured the public in a press conference yesterday that they are monitoring cases for the Omicron variant, and have not seen any evidence that the vaccine has failed to provide protection from the variant.

Currently, 58.02 percent of Ohioans have received their first dose of a vaccine and 53.04 percent of residents have completed the series.