COLUMBUS, Ohio — It's a question many have been asking in recent weeks: Has omicron finally reached its peak in Ohio?
“Omicron is hitting Ohio in waves," Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Vanderhoff said during a COVID press conference Thursday morning. "Right now, Southeast Ohio, Southern Ohio and the Dayton area are seeing increases in hospitalizations. So, have we reached our omicron peak? Well, it’s a yes and no depending on where you live."
He did say, however, that there appears to be "light at the end of the tunnel for us in Ohio."
"We are continuing to see many signs of improvement in some of Ohio’s first and hardest hit areas during this dramatic surge in COVID-19 cases, which, of course, have been fueled by the omicron variant.”
What about hospitals?
“Statewide, hospitalizations reached a pandemic high earlier this month and have been steadily dropping for the last 16 days," Dr. Vanderhoff continued. "Ohio hit a record 6,749 hospitalizations on Jan. 10. That number has been falling daily ever since, and now stands at 5,004. That’s a 25 percent drop in just two weeks. That drop in hospitalizations has been the steepest in Northeast Ohio where hospitalizations are falling just as quickly as they soared."
Dr. Vanderhoff warned, however, that case rates remain too high to let our guard down.
“Even when omicron finally does peak in all parts of Ohio, we are still going to be a long way from the much lower levels that we were seeing last spring and summer. Make no mistake, case numbers remain – in all parts of Ohio – incredibly high."
To put his point into perspective, Dr. Vanderhoff said we had hit a pandemic low last July with 19 cases per 100,000. This week, that number is currently more than 1,700 cases per 100,000. For context behind these numbers, the CDC defines high rates of community spread with anything more than 100 cases per 100,000.
We streamed the entire press conference, which you can watch below:
This COVID update comes as Ohio’s 21-day average for new infections now stands at 20,383 as of 2 p.m. Wednesday. Ohio is also reporting that 56.17 percent of the state’s population is now considered fully vaccinated.
MORE HEADLINES:
- RELATED: ODH: Schools no longer need to contact trace for COVID-19
- RELATED: COVID-19 in Ohio: Track the statewide data
- RELATED: Health experts worried as fewer Americans opt for booster
- RELATED: Medical experts weigh in on what type of face covering offers the best protection
- RELATED: Northeast Ohio doctors break down potential impacts of possible Pfizer omicron-specific vaccine
- RELATED: Where to find free N95 masks and how to get free COVID-19 tests in Northeast Ohio
Editor's note: Video in the player above was originally published in a previous COVID story on Jan. 26, 2022.