Caregivers Will Get First Doses Of COVID-19 Vaccines In Ohio, DeWine Says

Ohio could begin receiving COVID-19 vaccines around December 15, and if that’s the case, caregivers will be the first to get it.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said Friday (December 4) that caregivers — including first responders and healthcare workers — will be among the first to get the vaccine, followed by vulnerable populations. He said Pfizer and Moderna should deliver hundreds of thousands of doses to the Buckeye state this month.

DeWine and his wife plan to get the vaccine when it’s their turn, WBNS reported Friday. The Pfizer vaccine is slated to be sent out around December 15, followed by the Modern vaccine around December 22.

As COVID-19 cases have surged in Ohio, DeWine has implemented restrictions in hopes of mitigating the ongoing spread.

That includes a three-week curfew, another mask mandate and limiting gatherings, among other efforts.

“This surge is much more intense, widespread, and dangerous,” DeWine warned on Twitter on November 11. “As of today, every single one of our 88 counties has a high rate of virus spread, and areas of our state that were previously untouched — our rural areas — are being hit especially hard.”

The Ohio Department of Health tracked nearly 456,000 total cases and more than 6,880 deaths statewide as of Friday. The department noted, however, that Friday’s data is incomplete as officials “work through (a) surge in testing.”

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