All adult Ohioans will be eligible for the vaccine starting March 29, Gov. Mike DeWine announced on Tuesday.
Starting Friday Ohioans, ages 40 and older as well as those with certain medical conditions will be eligible to received the coronavirus vaccine.
Those with cancer, chronic kidney disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart disease or obesity will also be eligible starting Friday, according to the Journal-News.
DeWine announced the expansion in the state’s vaccine rollout Tuesday morning at the state’s first long-term mass vaccination site in Cleveland.
“It’s a moral imperative that we move as quickly as we can to vaccinate all Ohioans who wish to be vaccinated,” the governor said.
𝗢𝗵𝗶𝗼 𝗩𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗘𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗨𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲: It's a moral imperative that we move as quickly as we can to vaccinate all Ohioans who wish to be vaccinated. We expect a significant increase in vaccines coming to Ohio soon, so we will expand vaccine eligibility. ⬇ pic.twitter.com/jjFXtMhtf4
— Governor Mike DeWine (@GovMikeDeWine) March 16, 2021
DeWine said an expected increase in Ohio’s vaccine shipments is part of the reason for the expansion.
The state received 400,000 vaccines this week and is expected to receive another 400,000 next week. The federal government has indicated that the week of March 29 Ohio will see a “significant increase” in vaccine shipments, DeWine said.
An estimated 1.5 million Ohioans will be eligible starting Friday under the additional eligibility announced Tuesday.
