Columbus, Franklin County public health agencies issue indoor mask advisories as cases rise

Micah Walker, The Columbus Dispatch
·4 min read
Columbus Public Health and Franklin County Public Health issued mask advisories Friday, urging residents to wear masks indoors and in crowded places.
Columbus Public Health and Franklin County Public Health issued mask advisories Friday, urging residents to wear masks indoors and in crowded places.

As cases of COVID-19 continue to increase in Franklin County and across the state, Columbus and Franklin County public health agencies issued indoor mask advisories Friday, urging residents to wear masks indoors and in crowded places.

Columbus Public Health said in a news release that it enacted the advisory because Franklin County is now listed as a high level of transmission on the Centers for Disease Control and  Prevention's latest COVID-19 data tracker.

However, it is not a mask mandate, which Columbus Mayor Andrew J. Ginther dropped in March. 

“Protecting ourselves and our community from COVID-19 takes a multi-layered approach” Columbus Health Commissioner Dr. Mysheika Roberts said in the release.

“The best way to protect yourself and your loved ones from hospitalization and death from COVID-19 is to get vaccinated and boosted. Wearing a mask and testing if you’re sick also will help slow down the spread,” Roberts said.

Because Worthington is covered by Columbus Public Health, the mask advisory is also in place for that city.

Columbus Public Health's approach was echoed in an advisory statement issued by Franklin County Public Health.

"Cases and hospitalizations in Franklin County are spiking because of the highly-contagious Omicron BA.5 variant," the county health agency said in a release. "Because Franklin County is at the highest community level (on the CDC map), it is important that everyone takes precautions."

The agency recommends staying home if you test positive and contacting your healthcare provider to ask if you should take an antiviral. Additional precautions may be needed for people at high risk for severe illness.

For employers, Franklin County Public Health suggests requiring masks in places of business, encouraging staff not feeling well to stay home, and ordering a small business resource kit. The kits can be found at vax2normal.org/resources-for-businesses/. 

The CDC community transmission level for Franklin County is high based on the countywide case rate and hospital metrics.

The case rate in Franklin County is now 214 per 100,000, according to the Columbus Public Health release. New hospital admissions were 10.7 per 100,000 with 3.7% of patients in staffed inpatient beds confirmed with COVID-19.

As of Monday, the positivity rate in Franklin County was 19.8%.

Franklin County, as well as Marion, Pickaway and Union counties, have been upgraded to high risk COVID-19 community levels by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Franklin County, as well as Marion, Pickaway and Union counties, have been upgraded to high risk COVID-19 community levels by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Other central Ohio counties that are seeing high community levels of transmission include Marion, Pickaway and Union counties. Community levels remain at a medium level for Delaware, Fairfield, Licking and Madison counties.

Other major cities in the state that are seeing high transmission levels include Dayton and Cincinnati. Levels in the Cleveland, Akron and Toledo areas are at medium.

The news of the advisory comes as 26,610 COVID-19 cases were reported in Ohio in the past week. In contrast, the state was seeing just thousands of cases in late March and hovered above 10,000 in the beginning of May. Those numbers are most likely to be higher due to at-home tests not being recorded.

Nearly half of all new reported COVID-19 cases in Ohio in recent weeks came from the BA.5 variant, according to state health department data, as the U.S. enters another wave of the pandemic.

The CDC has a number of recommendations that are triggered by an upgrade to high level of transmission. They include:

  • Wear a well-fitting mask indoors in public, regardless of vaccination status (including in K-12 schools and other indoor community settings).

  • If you are immunocompromised or high risk for severe disease: Wear a mask or respirator that provides you with greater protection; consider avoiding non-essential indoor activities in public where you could be exposed; talk to your healthcare provider about whether you need to take other precautions; have a plan for rapid testing if needed; talk to your healthcare provider about whether you are a candidate for treatments like oral antivirals, PrEP, and monoclonal antibodies.

  • If you have household or social contact with someone at high risk for severe disease: Consider self-testing to detect infection before contact; consider wearing a mask when indoors with them.

  • Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines and boosters.

  • Maintain improved ventilation throughout indoor spaces when possible.

  • Follow CDC recommendations for isolation and quarantine, including getting tested if you are exposed to COVID-19 or have symptoms of COVID-19.

More: New BA.5 variant now almost half, if not more, of new COVID-19 cases in Ohio

More: How to get a COVID-19 vaccine for children under 5 in the Columbus area

Micah Walker is the Dispatch trending reporter. Reach her at mwalker@dispatch.com or 740-251-7199. Follow her on Twitter @micah_walker701. 

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Mask advisory issued in Franklin County as COVID cases increase