Governor unveils plan to slowly reopen Ohio for business
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - Ohio Governor Mike DeWine says it's time to get Ohio moving again and back to work, but it will happen slowly and under tight safety guidelines.
"We can do two things at once," DeWine said. "We can get this economy moving back at the same time continue to protect each other and protect our community."
Social distancing and a modified stay-at-home order will remain in place until further notice.
The phases of how businesses can reopen were unveiled Monday, with some sectors of the economy ramping back up at the end of the week on May 1.
Starting May 1, healthcare surgeries and procedures that do not require an overnight hospital stay can resume.
On May 4, the manufacturing, construction and distribution sector can return to work.
On May 12, retail businesses and consumer services can reopen to customers.
The businesses left out of the May reopening plan include restaurants, gyms, theaters, salons and daycares.
DeWine says he wants to reopen the economy in the state slowly and see how it goes to avoid having to reverse course and go back to mass shutdowns.
"We don't want to go back, we don't want to open things up and then have to fall back," DeWine said. "We don't want to see a huge spike in hospitalizations, we don't want to see a high spike in cases, the virus is still out there, it's not going to go away."
The openings come with five workplace protocols requiring employers and customers to wear face coverings, to conduct daily health screenings of employees, to maintain frequent hand washing and to clean and sanitize workplaces throughout the day, as well as at the closing of businesses each day.
At the same time, efforts to track the coronavirus will have to ramp up.
DeWine says testing in Ohio isn't where he wants it to be.
"If we're going to move the economy forward, open things up, we've got to be able to do the testing, we've got to do the tracing and you all have got to continue the separation and all thing you have been doing," he said.
Ohio's daily testing goals begin this week with about 7,200 tests a day to eventually reach 22,000 tests a day by the week of May 27.
The state is sending money to local health departments with a goal to have 1,750 contact tracing workers hired by June 1.
Ohio currently has 685 local public health workers that can help with contact tracing and 900 volunteers.
DeWine says it's believed the virus will be around for at least a year to 18 months.
He's setting a goal of hiring 1,750 contact tracers by June 1.
To ensure the state maintains enough contact tracing workers that entire time, he's sending money to local health departments to start hiring.
The state will provide training to the local health departments for contact tracing workers.
"Just as we attacked this first phase, I believe all of us in Ohio are going to do this next phase with all that same spirit," Dr. Amy Acton said, director of the Ohio Department of Health.
"It's essential that we do this all together," she said.
