COLUMBUS — Ohio Governor Mike DeWine on Friday provided the following updates on Ohio’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

VACCINATIONS INCREASING

DeWine announced that vaccination rates are increasing across the state. There has been an increase of vaccinations in 85 of Ohio’s 88 counties in July compared to the previous month, while last week saw an increase in all 88 counties compared to the first week in July.

“We have vaccines that are powerful and do an amazing job. They are so powerful that we now live in a state with two groups of people — those vaccinated and those not,” said DeWine. “Those who are vaccinated are safe, those who are not vaccinated are not safe.”

The latest data show that 60 percent of Ohioans 18 and over have received at least one dose of vaccine, while 58 percent of all eligible Ohioans, those 12 and older, are either fully or partially vaccinated. Demographic breakdowns of these age groups will now be available on the COVID-19 Vaccination Dashboard at coronavirus.ohio.gov .

DELTA VARIANT

The Delta variant is now the dominant strain of COVID-19 in Ohio. In May, less than 1 percent of lab sequenced cases were identified as the Delta variant. The most recent data from July 4 through July 17 show that 86.4 percent of lab sequenced cases were the Delta variant.

For those who get infected with the Delta variant, experts say they may have a higher viral load than those who are infected with other strains. It is much more contagious than any version of COVID-19 that we have encountered, and remains exceedingly dangerous to those who are not vaccinated, stated a news release from the governor’s office.

Of the total hospitalizations of COVID-19 patients since Jan. 1, there were 18,367 individuals who were not fully vaccinated. Just 295 patients had received the vaccine. Delta variant information will be available beginning Friday, Aug. 6 on the coronavirius.ohio.gov website and will be updated every Thursday.

“Delta spreads like wildfire and seeks out anyone who is unvaccinated. But there is good news as two things remain very clear: First, the vaccines are the key to containing this fire and ultimately putting it out,” said Ohio Department of Health Chief Medical Officer Bruce Vanderhoff, M.D.

“Secondly, vaccination is without any doubt your best bet, regardless of your age, for avoiding getting really sick with COVID-19 and to avoid lasting complications like Long Covid,” he added.

VACCINATION EFFORTS

Throughout the pandemic, local health departments, universities, schools, employers, pharmacies, nursing homes, hospitals, community health centers, primary care physicians, and pediatricians have worked tirelessly to vaccinate Ohioans.

“We have seen that potential incentives have encouraged some to get the COVID-19 vaccine. A study just published in the American Journal of Medicine estimates that nearly 115,000 additional Ohioans received vaccinations as a result of the Vax-a-Million program,” the news release stated.

The Ohio Department of Health is encouraging local health departments to continue their vaccination efforts and is offering to assist in those efforts.

CASE DATA/VACCINE INFORMATION

In-depth COVID-19 data for Ohio: coronavirus.ohio.gov

Ohio’s central scheduling system: gettheshot.coronavirus.ohio.gov

All vaccine providers: vaccine.coronavirus.ohio.gov