By Collin Cunningham
(OHIO) The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new guidelines Wednesday, urging residents of 23 counties in Ohio to begin wearing face masks in public once again after the state reported more than 1,300 new cases of the COVID-19 delta variant in one day.
According to Patch, the 1,317 delta cases reported by the Ohio Department of Health on Tuesday marks the first time in months the state has had over 1,000 new diagnoses in a single 24-hour period.
"This is fast becoming a pandemic of the unvaccinated," ODH chief medical officer Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff said on Monday, also encouraging students to again don masks when they return to school in a few weeks for the beginning of the fall semester.
In response, Patch reported separately that the following counties are currently listed by the CDC as having “high” or “substantial” transmission rates recently, meaning residents should wear masks indoors whether they’re vaccinated or not:
- Williams County
- Henry County
- Defiance County
- Fulton County
- Crawford County
- Ashland County
- Trumbull County
- Mahoning County
- Columbiana County
- Morgan County
- Washington County
- Meigs County
- Gallia County
- Lawrence County
- Scioto County
- Adams County
- Brown County
- Clinton County
- Greene County
- Montgomery County
- Miami County
- Preble County
- Butler County
Unvaccinated residents are encouraged to get the shot, which is effective against the delta variant of the coronavirus, a strain of COVID-19 that was first diagnosed in the U.S. in March after originating in India in December, per Yale Medicine.
Everyone over the age of 12 is currently eligible to receive the coronavirus vaccine in the United States.