MIAMI VALLEY — Clark County Combined Health District encouraged anyone who is able to get the COVID-19 vaccine to do so, because at Springfield Regional Medical Center COVID-19 hospitalizations have more than tripled in the last week,
“We are not out of the woods yet,” said Charles Patterson, Clark County Health Commissioner. “Following safety protocols is still our best line of defense against the virus until more people in our community are fully vaccinated.”
The positive momentum locally of reducing hospitalizations involving patients with COVID-19 this month has been nearly erased as hospitalizations have returned to February levels, data shows.
On Thursday, the region that includes most of the Miami Valley reported 89 people in the hospital with COVID-19, according to the Ohio Hospital Association. That number is up from 46 hospitalizations about a week ago, nearly doubling.
Statewide hospitalizations have also began to increase once again after months of declines, which strengthens Gov. Mike DeWine’s message that Ohio is in a race to get its population vaccinated before COVID-19 variants spread more significantly in the state.
The increase comes as neighboring states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and West Virginia all have begun seeing cases start to increase once again.
Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff, Ohio’s Chief Medical Officer, said that all of the good news recently regarding COVID-19 can tempt Ohioans to take down their guard.
“We are in the final stretch of this marathon. We need to keep up our masking and distancing,” Vanderhoff said.
The Ohio Hospital Association reported a 9.8 percent increase last week in hospitalizations of people age 18-49.
Cox Media Group
