DeWine: Most Of Ohio Could Have COVID-19 Vaccine By Summer 2021

Gov. Mike DeWine expects it’ll be summer 2021 before a COVID-19 vaccine is available to most of Ohio.

And until then, “things will get worse before they get better,” he said.

Particularly in rural parts of the state, the number of cases of the novel coronavirus continue increasing, DeWine said during a Tuesday briefing (October 13).

The Ohio Department of Health reported more than 171,600 total cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, and more than 5,017 deaths.

“This virus is sneaky and cunning and won’t give up,” DeWine said in a 19News story.

He tweeted Tuesday: “A vaccine is coming, and judging by indicators, it’ll work. But the timing isn’t something Ohioans can control.”

“Here is what we can control,” DeWine continued on Twitter. “Waring masks and avoiding large gatherings. Where we have had high mask usage, we have significantly reduced cases and spread.”

DeWine has long urged Ohioans to continue wearing masks, social distancing and taking other COVID-19 precautions.

He and other officials have braced for colder weather with the change of seasons, which could prompt an influx of cases as people remain indoors, where the virus could spread easier.

DeWine also urged people to continue wearing masks until a vaccine is available to the general public after a study found that very few Ohioans had developed COVID-19 antibodies, so the state isn’t close to developing herd immunity.

“We can do this,” DeWine tweeted Tuesday. “Wear mask when you are in any place where you will see others. The virus wants us to get complacent because it needs us to spread it.”

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