COLUMBUS, Ohio — Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted are set to hold a briefing with the latest update on Ohio's response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Here were some of the items DeWine and Husted addressed on Tuesday:
Boos for DeWine/Husted on Monday
Both DeWine and Husted received jeers from the crowd in Vandalia at President Trump's campaign event on Monday. What was also concerning was the noticable lack of masks and social distancing at both of Trump's Ohio events.
"Booing is a First Amendment right, whether you're at a ballpark or a political rally," DeWine said of his reception in Dayton. People have every right to boo. I've been picketed in the past, I've been booed in the past."
As far as the lack of masks went, DeWine said, "We've made it very clear that if you're exercising your First Amendment rights, we're not going to have a health order. We said the same thing to demonstrators at Dr. Acton (former Ohio health director), me, those who came to my house. But we've also made it clear to please wear a mask. That's how you stay safe. We've been consistent about this mask guidance. They (those who did not wear masks at the rallies) did not follow that, some did, many did not, and that's too bad."
Paying tribute to RBG
"Putting aside decisions, put aside politics... ideology, her life story is an inspiration," Governor DeWine said, "She continued to inspire people as she fought different health challenges, and wherever you sit on the political spectrum, you had to be inspired by her."
DeWine did not want to weigh in too deeply on the controversial question of President Trump naming a nominee to replace Ginsburg for the Senate to consider prior to the upcoming presidential election.
"What I always said at the time, was that as far as making a judgment, I would not make a judgement until we had had the opportunity to take a look at that individual," DeWine said, "I'm going to leave it to my friends in the Senate who will be voting there."
A huge donation by Ford
Husted announced that Ford is donating 2 million medical grade face masks to the state of Ohio for healthcare providers, first responders, underserved populations, and senior living communities. The donation is part of the Ford Fund’s commitment of 100 million medical-grade face masks through 2021.
The company, currently manufacturing 2.5 million medical-grade masks a week for its employees and at-risk communities, is growing the number of mask-making machines by mid- to late-October to increase production and deliver on its goal. Ohio’s Department of Administrative Services and Development Services Agency have partnered with JobsOhio to work with the Ford Government Relations Team, as well as many others, to secure lifesaving personal protective equipment since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
New addition to the COVID dashboard
DeWine today unveiled a new case demographics dashboard on coronavirus.ohio.gov.
The new dashboard gives citizens access to COVID-19 case data by race or ethnicity. The data can be broken down by age and county and compared to the overall Ohio population.
"Improving data collection and reporting, as well as creating a publicly-available dashboard, were recommendations from the COVID-19 Minority Health Strike Force," said DeWine. "This dashboard will help better track health inequities and disparities, and we believe this data will also help put critical decisions into context for policymakers."
