CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio — Gov. Mike DeWine continued to urge Ohioans to get vaccinated during a visit to Circleville High School Saturday morning.
DeWine focused on the increasing case numbers and continued his emphasis on Ohioans getting vaccinated.
"We can vaccinate our way out of this problem," DeWine said about the rising case numbers in Ohio and across the country.
Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff, Ohio's chief medical officer, blames the rise of cases on the number of emerging variants in the country.
Both DeWine and Vanderhoff are hoping vaccine distribution slows down the spread. As of April 9, nearly four million Ohioans have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
DeWine claimed that vaccinated people are influencing other people in their families to get vaccinated.
Franklin County was put on back on the watch list for Level 4 (Purple) in the state's advisory system to track the spread of COVID-19 on Thursday.
DeWine was hopeful that Franklin County would not reach Level 4 on Saturday.
As of Thursday, Data from the Ohio Department of Health shows the county has 217 cases per 100,000 residents with 2,869 over the past two weeks.
DeWine's visit to Pickaway County comes as the state rescinded health orders, but issued a new version to be put in its place.
The new health order still requires wearing masks and social distancing in public, but eases rules for large outdoor gatherings like graduations and festivals.
Though the state will no longer limit the size of such events, DeWine said on Monday participants would be asked to stay separated in groups of 10 or fewer — rather than merging into one huge crowd — to help reduce possible spread of the coronavirus.
The new order comes on the heels of COVID-19 cases continuing to rise across Ohio.