Gov. DeWine announces state of emergency ends June 2

May 13—COLUMBUS — In a statewide address on Wednesday, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced that, except for those related to nursing homes and assisted-care facilities, all pandemic health orders would be removed on June 2.

Now that the vaccine is available, he said, it's up to each Ohio citizen on whether to get it, and he believes the next three weeks is enough time for anyone who is not yet vaccinated to do so before the orders officially end.

"Everyone can now control their own health," he said. "Everyone can now control their own destiny."

During the 5:30 p.m. address, Governor DeWine commended Ohioans for their response to the pandemic and said the state is on its way toward its goal of dropping the two-week case rate to below 50 per 100,000 residents. He cited data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing that Ohio's seven-day case rate was lower than neighboring states.

"You showed grit, determination, and such great compassion, he said.

With the Pfizer vaccine being approved for children 12 years old and older, Mr. DeWine said the state would start vaccinating eligible children on Thursday.

But he also cautioned that lifting the health orders doesn't mean that the virus is gone, and those who are unvaccinated are still at risk not just from the coronavirus, but from variants as well.

"The danger of remaining unvaccinated is crystal clear," he said. "The virus is still here."

He announced two drawings he hopes will incentivize vaccinations. Ohioans under 18 who are eligible to receive a vaccine will be entered into a drawing for a four-year full scholarship to any of the state's colleges and universities. Adult Ohioans will be entered into a drawing with a prize of up to $1 million.

A total of five weekly drawings for each prize will take place, with the first winners being announced on May 26.

Locally and throughout the state, people shared mixed reactions to the upcoming end of the health orders.

"I can't wait until they lift the masks," said Darlene Woods, 67, of Toledo.

She and her husband Ric Woods, 65, were headed to dinner in Hensville with family Wednesday evening when they learned of the news. Each has their vaccine and is ready to resume traveling and socializing again.

Their daughter Julie Woods, 36, of Maumee, said the governor's timing is appropriate, given the availability of vaccines. She said she wouldn't fault anyone for continuing to mask up, but it's important to loosen restrictions and get businesses operating back at full capacity.

"We're ready," said Bill Kline, managing partner of Blarney Irish Pub.

The restaurant has been "making the best of the situation" for the last year, after social distancing requirements limited capacity, by selling sponsorships to fund the igloo seating outside and the table dividers inside, he said. But getting to remove the restrictions still comes as a welcome relief.

"It wasn't fun trying to corral everybody into tables and chairs throughout this," Mr. Kline said.

Still, he expects the restaurant will keep a section with the dividers intact for customers who may still want the added comfort of distance.

"It will be interesting to see if people will start coming out a lot more en masse, especially older folks," he said.

Winfield Luther, 34, the bar manager at Home Slice Pizza on St. Clair Street, said he's vaccinated and ready to get downtown "back up and running." But he, too, said he'll probably keep some barriers and distancing in place, for now, to ensure customers feel comfortable coming back to dine in.

"I"m excited. We pushed through, but I was hoping after vaccines there would be a light at the end of the tunnel," he said.

John Barker, president and CEO of the Ohio Restaurant Association, released a statement after the announcement to say that ending the health orders is the next logical step.

"Eliminating the six-foot social distancing requirement will enable restaurant, bar and foodservice operators to return to greater sales capacity for indoor dining, which is critical to our industry's recovery and profitability," Mr. Barker said.

Toledoans Ryan Youngston, 38, and Aaron Cain, 43, were at the Bronze Boar on Huron Street as the governor made his announcement. Both said they received their vaccines, but they believe it's a little too soon to lift all restrictions.

"There's still not a lot of people getting vaccinations. I think it would probably be wiser to show a little more restraint," Mr. Cain said.

Mr. Youngston said he anticipates bars and restaurants will open fully and do without mask requirements because businesses need the increased income. Both said they'll likely continue to wear masks indoors, at least for now.

"Money's got to flow, the economy has to do it's thing, but at the same time I don't know if we should just go back full-on to what it was before," Mr. Cain said.

Toledoan Mandy Phillips, 46, also said it's too soon to lift the pandemic health orders. She anticipates some local businesses will keep their own mask mandates in place a little longer.

"A lot of businesses are having such a hard time staffing anyway, so I would think they would try to protect the staff they do have," she said.

Eric Zgodzinski, health commissioner of the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department, declined to immediately comment on the news. Sean Savage, founder of the VProject, said the announcement is proof that we are on the right track.

Early on he set a goal for the group to make northwest Ohio the most vaccinated part of the state. About 40 percent of Lucas County's population has at least started the process, and new infections are falling.

"So the governor's announcement is clear evidence that the vaccines are working," Mr. Savage said. "Any incentive that can lead more people to get vaccinated is a positive for the community."

The news coincides with VProject's so-called "VWeek," a week-long push to encourage residents to get their shot. Members have been going door-to-door across the city helping people sign up for their shot, a new call center is directing residents by phone, and a mobile vaccination unit staffed by the Toledo Fire and Rescue Department has been visiting different locations in the city each day.

When the vaccine is easy to access, Mr. Savage said, residents are more willing to get it. In the first two days of having the mobile unit running, 153 people rolled up their sleeves.

Another event at Ernest Brew Works on Tuesday was offering a free beer to the first 100 customers who opted to be vaccinated.

"We hope to be able to continue some of these efforts," Mr. Savage said. "There's a lot of positives right now."

Andi Roman, spokesman for the Toledo Mud Hens, said the group would provide details about how it plans to move forward under the removal of the health orders at a later time.

Before the governor's announcement, some speculated that an end to the pandemic restrictions was on the horizon.

"I think we're headed toward a summertime (when) there aren't going to be any restrictions in whatever fashion that ultimately happens," Senate President Matt Huffman (R., Lima) said.

The governor's announcement is coming as state lawmakers have been moving toward eventually rescinding many of the orders anyway.

Last month, the Ohio General Assembly overrode the governor's veto of a bill giving lawmakers the ability to undo such orders and prohibiting future moves by health directors to quarantine people who have not been known to have been exposed to a contagious disease or been exposed to someone who has.

That law is set to take effect on June 23.

Mr. Huffman said legislative action to remove orders may not be necessary "because at this point this is all coming to an end very quickly, and I think that's a good thing."

Ohio reported 1,449 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, above the 21-day average of 1,371.

The state has reached a total of 1,087,182 cases and 19,441 deaths, according to the Ohio Department of Health. New deaths were not reported on the health department's dashboard Wednesday.

Staff writer Kaitlin Durbin contributed to this report.