County fairs can open in Ohio as long as they follow safety protocols in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, Gov. Mike DeWine said.

DeWine said Thursday that opening fairs are local decisions.

But to open, fairs must maintain social distancing for its visitors, limit crowds, ensure the health of those involved, and make sure the care and welfare of animals are addressed, he said.

Trumbull County Fair board members voted May 21 to cancel that county’s fair, which was scheduled for June 6-12, because they didn’t believe they could make a profit with the expected decreased attendance and were concerned about safely following the state Department of Health guidelines. Several other county fairs in the state and the Ohio State Fair also have been canceled.

The Canfield Fair still is scheduled for Sept. 2-7.

“Conditions may change over the summer, but we are asking all fair boards to comply with all of the Ohio Department of Health orders in place, and the guidelines for other sectors that would also apply to fairs like food service and rides,” DeWine said.

Asked about reopening amusement parks, zoos and similar venues, DeWine said: “We’re going to try to address that next week.”

DeWine said his next news conference will be Tuesday.

Also Thursday, DeWine said the state will start on June 8 allowing outdoor visitation only to those with developmental disabilities in assisted-living and intermediate-care facilities “that are properly prepared.”

It’s the start of a plan to allow visitors to long-term care facilities, where about 70 percent of all of the state’s COVID-19 fatalities have occurred.

But DeWine said the state is not ready to allow visitors to nursing homes.

He said he understands how difficult the visitation ban has been on people. The restriction has been in place since March.

“We will continue to examine, monitor and adjust as we carefully and thoughtfully lift restrictions on visitation,” DeWine said.

Each facility will determine how to best implement outdoor visitations, he said, but the policy must require screening for temperatures and symptom-reporting for visitors, scheduled hours for visits, proper social distancing, face coverings and education on the risk of spreading the virus.

Also, there are changes for visitation during end-of-life situations, he said. Family members should be notified when a resident’s substantial change of condition indicates their death is approaching and no longer wait until that person is actively dying to allow visitors, DeWine said.

Meanwhile, in an effort to expand COVID-19 testing, which has been lagging in Ohio, DeWine said the State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy has clarified rules to allow pharmacists to order and administer tests.

COVID-19 DATA

There was one COVID-19 death reported Thursday in the Mahoning Valley.

The death was in Columbiana County with the county health district saying it was a 65-year-old woman whose death date was April 30.

Oftentimes, reported deaths lag behind actual deaths because of delays in filing COVID-19 death certificates and also determining if the virus was the reason for fatalities.

There were no deaths reported Thursday in Mahoning and Trumbull counties.

Overall, there were 273 COVID-19 deaths as of Thursday in the Valley: 173 in Mahoning, 47 in Trumbull and 53 in Columbiana counties.

There were 2,098 COVID-19 deaths in the state as of Thursday, up from 2,044 Wednesday.

There were 33,915 confirmed cases of the virus in Ohio on Thursday, up from 33,439 a day prior.

There were 1,425 cases in Mahoning County on Thursday, up from 1,393 Wednesday.

There were 556 cases in Trumbull County on Thursday, up from 546 Wednesday.

In Columbiana County, there were 687 cases Thursday, up from 682 a day earlier.

Of the 687 cases, 336 — 48.9 percent — were inmates at the Federal Correctional Institution in Elkton, according to the Columbiana County Health District.

Statewide, 5,811 people were hospitalized as of Thursday because of the virus, up from 5,700 Wednesday.

There were 1,516 people in intensive-care units Thursday, up from 1,492 Wednesday.

COVID-19 by the numbers

The number of cases, hospitalizations and deaths in counties in the region and statewide as of Thursday:

County Cases Hospitalizations Deaths

Trumbull 556 177 47

Mahoning 1,425 306 173

Ashtabula 324 54 34

Columbiana 687 131 53

Geauga 272 62 31

Ohio 33,915 5,811 2,098

SOURCE: Ohio Department of Health