Over 2.7M register for Ohio Vax-A-Million; DeWine gives updates on Medicaid recipients, and kids & quarantine

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Well over 2 million Ohioans have registered for the Ohio-Vax-A-Million promotion, Gov. Mike DeWine said at a Monday afternoon briefing.

“We continue to see increased uptake of the vaccine in response to this promotion — 2,758,470 Ohioans registered for the $1M drawing and 104,386 young Ohioans registered for the scholarship drawing,” said DeWine.

The first winners will be announced Wednesday at 7:29 p.m.

“After announcing this promotion, we’ve seen the biggest increase in vaccinations in the 16-17 year-old age group — a 94% increase,” he said. “Among 18 and 19 year-olds, there has been a 46% increase. From the 20-49 age group, a 55% increase in vaccinations.”

The state on Monday showed that Ohioans have dropped below 100 cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 population since the pandemic began. The number for May 10 to May 23 averaged 89.8.

The deadline to register for this week’s Vax-A-Million drawing was Sunday, but you can still register for the subsequent four remaining drawings at http://OhioVaxamillion.com .

Once you register, your entry will be carried over to future drawings – there is no need to register each week.

If you do not have internet access, you can also call 1-833-4-ASK-ODH to register by phone. If you do have internet access, registration online at http://OhioVaxamillion.com is preferred and is the faster option to register with the exact same odds of winning.

On Medicaid

“As we look at the number of vaccinations across Ohio, we know that Ohio Medicaid beneficiaries have a lower uptake than Ohioans overall – 22% compared to 45%,” said DeWine. “Earlier this month we challenged our managed care plans to do more to get these numbers up because this is unacceptable.

“In response, they’ve taken several steps to encourage vaccinations such as incentives of gift cards, ensuring transportation is available, tailoring strategies to meet people where they are, and creating vaccine opportunities outside of normal business hours.

“These major efforts show real promise, and I’m very hopeful that we’ll increase the amount vaccinations among people with Medicaid.

Kids and quarantine

“We’ve heard from some health departments that they are getting questions from schools about isolation and quarantine,” said DeWine.

“Vaccinated children do not have to quarantine or be tested if they are exposed. Unvaccinated children who are close contacts of the positive case should quarantine. While this not a state health order, it is a standard infection control practice.

“When dealing with deadly communicable disease, isolation and quarantine of unvaccinated people has been used successfully for hundreds of years. These are standard public health practices that are implemented for many communicable diseases including measles and mumps.

School districts

DeWine said that, beginning June 2, school districts will have discretion about whether to continue masking and social distancing.

However, if a child has not been vaccinated, they should isolate if they test positive for COVID-19.

Local numbers

As of Monday’s update, the state reports Clinton County has had 3,759 cases — with 3,623 of those reported as presumably recovered — including 64 deaths.

Ohio’s COVID-19 statistics as of the Monday afternoon update.
https://www.wnewsj.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/22/2021/05/web1_ohio-stats.jpgOhio’s COVID-19 statistics as of the Monday afternoon update. State of Ohio
DeWine updates: Medicaid recipients; kids & quarantine

By Tom Barr

[email protected]

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