COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has announced that he has tested positive for COVID-19.
"He started experiencing mild, cold-like symptoms yesterday, including sneezing and a runny nose. His symptoms worsened slightly during the night, but the Governor is working remotely from home today," said DeWine's office in a press release.
Before getting together with family over the weekend, DeWine took a cautionary COVID-19 test on Sunday and tested negative.
DeWine's office says he has started taking Paxlovid as advised by his doctor and will work from home the rest of the week.
Currently, KP.3.1.1, a variant in the Omnicron family, is the predominant COVID-19 variant. Since June, COVID-19 cases and wastewater detections have risen in Ohio.
More recently, COVID-19 has been on the upswing across the U.S.
Factors for the seasonal uptick could be increased travel, people staying indoors to avoid summer heat and the virus’ continued evolution.
If you get sick, note that the CDC recommends staying away from other people until your symptoms improve, and you’ve been fever-free for 24 hours.
In addition, the CDC is recommending COVID-19 vaccines for anyone six months and older.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS CONTRIBUTED TO THIS REPORT.