Ohios top doctor: Now is time to get vaccinated before Thanksgiving – WJW FOX 8 News Cleveland

by: Talia Naquin, Jen Steer

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WJW) Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff held a news conference on COVID-19 Thursday morning.

He was joined by Kirk Tucker, MD, Chief Clinical Officer of Adena Health System and Adam Mezoff, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Dayton Childrens Hospital.

Vanderhoff encouraged people to get vaccinated for COVID-19 and the flu. He also said this is the time to get vaccinated before the holidays with Thanksgiving just seven weeks away.

Now is not the time to let up. We have to remain vigilant. We all have to continue to do our part to stay healthy and this includes, in part, choosing to be vaccinated and wearing a mask when directed, Vanderhoff said.

When asked about the possibility of a winter surge, Ohios top doctor said hes given up on trying to predict what this virus will do.

It is, by its nature, a virus that spreads more readily during the winter months. In many ways, we were very blessed to encounter delta during the summertime, Vanderhoff said. I genuinely fear that had this hit us in the winter, we would have had an even more severe experience than what we had.

Data from theOhio Hospital Associationearlier this week showed a slight decrease in new hospital admissions due toCOVID-19.

New admissions are down 3 percent over the previous week. Over the last seen days, 3,419 people were admitted to a hospital in Ohio because of COVID-19. Thats one in six patients.

According toOHA data, there were 3,678 newCOVID-19admissions and 1,014 patients in the ICU onSept. 21.

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Ohios top doctor: Now is time to get vaccinated before Thanksgiving - WJW FOX 8 News Cleveland