Coronavirus Pandemic: 90 cases in Ohio; What you need to know

Ohio has 90 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, according to the Ohio Department of Health.  Of those, 26 have been admitted to a hospital. There have been no related deaths.

Also Wednesday, confirmed and presumptive positive cases of COVID-19 were reported in Dayton, Kettering and Miami County.

In Dayton, the Dayton VA Medical Center confirmed that one of its patients tested positive for COVID-19.

“The Veteran was transferred to the Dayton VA Medical Center from a nursing home in the community and placed into contact isolation for an unrelated medical condition shortly before he began exhibiting any symptoms related to COVID-19,” the Dayton VA said in a statement.

“Because proper procedures were followed, the risk of transmission to other patients and staff remains low.”

The veteran is being cared for in respiratory isolation.

Officials later in the day said the man, a Clark County resident, had come to the medical center from an assisted living facility in Troy, where a second resident has become a “presumptive case” of COVID-19.

Gov. Mike DeWine has said that according to health officials, an estimated 2.2 million Americans would have died if nothing was done about the virus.

New numbers from the state are released daily at 2 p.m.

And on the second full day of the mobile clinic at UD Arena, where Premier Health is testing for COVID-19, 323 of the 345 total tests administered were for the coronavirus. Twenty-two of the 210 tests administered for flu were positive. Thirty people were turned away because they had no physician’s order, according to Premier Health officials.

>> Coronavirus: 235 patients tested at UD Arena; positive test results probable, doctor says

Wednesday night, Kettering Health Network officials confirmed their first COVID-19 positive case at one of its hospitals. Here are the highlights:

• The patient, a male in his 60s, was brought to Kettering Medical Center on March 14 has been instructed to self-isolate.
• His test results came back as positive on Wednesday, Kettering Health Network officials said.
• He spent a night in a negative pressure room and released the next day in good condition. He

Wednesday afternoon, health officials in Miami and Clark counties held a news conference to discuss a confirmed case and a “presumptive case” of the coronavirus from the same assisted living facility in Troy:

• The confirmed case is a 70-year-old male; the presumptive case is a 62-year-old female. Both are from the Koester Pavilion Assisted Living Facility in Troy.
• 19 people at the facility are being investigated for possible COVID-19 exposure. Twelve are residents and include the confirmed and presumptive cases.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and state health Director Dr. Amy Acton provided their daily update on the state's response to the pandemic. Here are some highlights:

• Testing is limited and will likely remain that way. The vast majority of Ohioans don't need to be tested. If you feel symptoms, act as though you have the coronavirus. You should stay home and so should your family.
• All but five Bureau of Motor Vehicles locations in Ohio will shut down at the end of business Wednesday.
• Law enforcement has been asked to not issue tickets for expired licenses if people say they can no longer get a renewal.
• Hair salons, barbershops, spas and tattoo parlors have been ordered to close by the end of business today.
• Businesses are asked, beginning immediately, to take the temperature of every employee daily before they come into the workplace.
• The age range of cases is 2 years old to 91 years old. The median age is 48 and a half.
• Thirty-three females and 55 males have contracted the coronavirus.
• Two weeks ago, 6,500 unemployment requests were made. Three days into this week, 78,000 requests have been made.

Public Health - Dayton & Montgomery County provided an update on its response at a 4 p.m. press conference. Here are some highlights:

• Parents in the Women, Infants & Children program are no longer required to bring their infants to WIC visits. Bring only documentation.
• If you believe you are ill, you can call Primary Health Solutions for a teleconference and possible physician's order. Call 937-535-5060 or 513-454-1111 to schedule an appointment
• Not everyone will need to be tested for COVID-19. Those tests are meant for patients deemed medically necessary in order to preserve protective gear for healthcare professionals

The White House announced the following during a noon press conference:

• President Trump will invoke the Defense Production Act, which is the primary source of presidential authorities to expedite and expand the supply of resources from the U.S. industrial base to support military, energy, space, and homeland security programs.
• FEMA is activated at Level 1, which is the highest level.
• The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is working to suspend all foreclosures and evictions until the end of April, Trump said.
• The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is working to allow all doctors and medical professionals to work across state lines, Vice President Mike Pence said.
• The Defense Department is prepared to deploy USNS Mercy and USNS Comfort, two Naval hospital ships, as needed.
• U.S. has access to more than 10,000 ventilators, with more expected to become available from the Defense Department.

Here’s what you need to know today:

• Honda plants in North America, including all plants in Ohio, will shut down for six days starting next week. The affected plants include Marysville and Anna. The distribution center in Troy is not part of the production stoppage.
• Franklin County Public Health has confirmed a 2-year-old has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to WBNS-TV in Columbus. The child is at home and not in a hospital, an official said.
• President Donald Trump said Wednesday in a Twitter post that the U.S. and Canada have agreed to temporarily close their border to non-essential traffic as governments scramble to contain the 2019 novel coronavirus.
• The US and Canada are working on a mutual ban on non-essential travel.
• All elective surgeries are to be postponed in Ohio hospitals starting today.
• A TSA screening officer at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport has tested positive for the coronavirus. His last day working was on March 14. 
  
• Gov. Mike DeWine is asking all celebration with large gathering be delayed. i.e:Funerals and weddings.

• Dr. Joseph Allen, a doctor Premier Health, said "We'll probably have our first positive test (Wednesday)."
• More than 200 people have been tested and results will be available in one-to-two days according to Allen.
• Mercer Health will open a drive-thru testing center at the Mercer County Fairgrounds in Celina today
• Montgomery County officials declared a state of emergency.
• Commissioners have frozen hiring and are adding 14 days of leave for employees that would need it.
• SNAP benefits are still being processed and are not impacted by the state of emergency.
• Payments of county water bills and other bills can be done online or over the phone.

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