CLEVELAND — The Ohio Department of Health reported on Thursday that the number of COVID-19 cases in the state has increased for the fifth consecutive week.
Locally, several Northeast Ohio counties have returned to the CDC's rating of high transmission:
Ashtabula County is now the leader in Ohio with 243.7 cases per 100,000 covering a two-week period between April 21 and May 4. That number was at 155.3 on April 28. According to the CDC, the county experienced a 46.7% surge in cases in the period between April 27- May 3 compared to the previous seven days.
Cuyahoga County's case rate is at 223.3 cases per 100,000, which ranks at No. 4 in Ohio based on new numbers from the state's department of health. According to the CDC, the county experienced a 29.61% surge in cases in the period between April 27- May 3 compared to the previous seven days.
Lorain County is at 222.7 cases per 100,000, according to the Ohio Department of Health. That number was at 114.6 on April 21. The CDC reports that Lorain County's COVID-19 case number surged 68% in the period between April 27-May 3 compared to the previous week.
Geauga County is also on the CDC's high transmission list after experiencing a 128% surge in COVID-19 cases in the week of April 27-May 3, compared to the previous seven days.
11 Ohio counties in all are on the CDC's high transmission list. Meanwhile, several other Northeast Ohio counties ranked high in the Ohio Department of Health's case rate count:
- Portage County - 226.5 cases per 100K (3rd in Ohio)
- Summit County - 201.5 cases per 100K (7th in Ohio)
- Medina County - 186.9 cases per 100K (10th in Ohio)
- Lake County - 182.9 cases per 100K (11th in Ohio)
All four of the above counties were rated as 'substantial transmission' by the CDC.
A closer look at this week's data from the Ohio Department of Health shows that while the number of new cases in Ohio increased by nearly 3,000, hospitalizations only slightly increased. There were 358 patients hospitalized for COVID-19 in Ohio on April 28. That number stands at 427 as of May 5. The number of ICU patients rose from 50 to 58.
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