COVID-19 safety measures

Gov. Mike DeWine has paused the use of of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine after rare blood clots were reported in six people who received the one-shot vacinne. The Ohio Supreme Court has agreed to fast-track a ruling in the case pitting the Stark County Board of Elections against the county’s commissioners over the purchase of Dominion voting machines; despite Gov. Mike DeWine promising last April to disclose the number of Ohio doctors, nurses and other health care workers who became infected with COVID-19, the Ohio Department of Health says it will not release that information; the Beacon Journal reports that some people expressed confusion over Gov. Mike DeWine’s decision to cancel the previous mask mandate, and reissue it Friday as part of a consolidated health order; and more stories.

Coronavirus vaccinations will expand to include Ohio residents over 50 years of age, those with Type 2 diabetes and those with end-stage renal disease starting Thursday, Gov. Mike DeWine announced Monday.

An outdated reporting system that led to the undercount of more than 4,200 COVID-19 deaths in Ohio will now be retired; two new health orders are now in effect that relax rules for Ohio professional and youth sports as well as wedding and entertainment venues; an Akron-based call center is closing, eliminating 150 jobs; and more stories.

Ohio is the first state to challenge the U.S. Census Bureau’s decision to push back the release of 2020 census figures; Four Ohio counties have dropped from level 3 red to level 2 orange on the COVID-19 alert map; Gov. DeWine says sports and entertainment facilities can reopen with limited attendance; and more stories.

The Ohio Department of Health says as many as 4,000 COVID-19 deaths may have been underreported through the state’s reporting system, and those will now be added to the state’s tally during the coming week; Gov. Mike DeWine is expected to lift the state’s overnight curfew on Thursday; Republican Josh Mandel will make a third run for the U.S. Senate in Ohio; and more stories.

Researcher recommends more diligence with methods known to help reduce the spread of the highly contagious variants.

The statewide curfew has been moved back one hour, to 11 p.m.; University Hospitals officials say new forms of COVID-19 that spread much faster are already circulating in Northeast Ohio; after hinting that he might run for U.S. Senate in 2022, Lt. Gov. Jon Husted says he’s going to keep his current job; and more stories.

Authorities say shots were fired over the weekend into a home owned by an Ohio health department official; beginning today, Ohioans age 75 and older are eligible to get a COVID-19 vaccine; the state reported 4,481 cases of COVID-19 on Sunday and 31 deaths; and more stories.

New coronavirus cases in Ohio shot up Thursday with more than 7,200 cases; Gov. Mike DeWine says the state will spend $50 million in federal pandemic aid dollars to buy 2 million coronavirus tests for at-home testing; the number of Ohioans filing initial unemployment claims jumped again last week; and more stories.

The coronavirus pandemic has restricted many families from seeing their loved ones who live in nursing homes. But a new bill could give caregivers more access and opportunity for hands-on care.