COLUMBUS — Gov. Mike DeWine is unsure why the percentage of Ohioans older than 80 who have been vaccinated has stalled at around 60 percent in the past weeks, but he and his team are looking into the issue, DeWine said at a Tuesday press conference.
DeWine does not know the specific cause for the stall, but said he believes Ohio’s recent winter weather contributed, he said.
“I think the other thing that happened, this is just a guess," DeWine said. "With the bad weather that we had, correctly, I suppose some 80 year olds are thinking it’s not really wise for me to go out in this ice and snow."
For the past few weeks, the percentage of Ohioans older than 80 who have been vaccinated has slowly increased, but stayed at around 60 percent. DeWine does not think the state has reached the ceiling for older Ohioans, and wants to see the percentage go into the 70’s, he said.
Ohio could see a large increase in vaccinations as March begins. For the week of March 1, Ohio will receive over 300,000 first doses of vaccine. The state’s weekly supply has hovered around 145,000 doses during February, the governor’s press secretary Dan Tierney said.
Nathan Hart is a Statehouse News Bureau fellow who works in Columbus to tell stories that affect people here in Cincinnati. He also attends Gov. Mike DeWine's press briefings. If you have a question you would like Hart to ask DeWine, you can email him at nathanhartmmj@gmail.com.
The Statehouse News Bureau Fellowship program is designed to give Ohio University E.W. Scripps School of Journalism students hands-on experience and at the same time increase coverage of the statehouse. The program is funded by the Scripps Howard Foundation and other sources.
