PARMA, Ohio — Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish and officials from the county board of health held a briefing Wednesday to discuss the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Health Commissioner Terry Allan and others will joined Budish via Zoom at 1:30 p.m. The topics discussed included the approaching cooler temperatures and vaccines, especially those who have yet to receive the shots.
"I really don't understand why so many people are resistant to getting the vaccine," Budish said, adding residents can find providers at gettheshot.coronavirus.ohio.gov. "For those who have been vaccinated, thank you! You are a large part of the reason we’re seeing this decrease in numbers."
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As mentioned, COVID cases are beginning to decline across the state of Ohio, with Cuyahoga County in particular seeing a mostly slow but steady drop since its mid-September peak during this fourth wave. 55.6% of county residents are also fully vaccinated against the virus, one of the highest rates in the state of Ohio (although still moderately below what experts say is needed for effective herd immunity).
However, with fall already under way and winter on the horizon, Budish is concerned about another potential spike, especially as people begin to spend more time indoors and possibly at larger gatherings.
"Because of this, last year at this time our cases skyrocketed, and we saw far too many positive cases, far too many deaths," he told reporters. "We now have the chance to prevent this, and that's by getting vaccinated."
Watch the full briefing again in the player below:
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