The COVID-19 pandemic in Ohio is as strong now as it’s been in about four months.

The Ohio Department of Health reported 2,167 new COVID-19 cases Wednesday. It’s the first time the state has exceed 2,000 since a four-day stretch between April 13 and 16 and is the most cases reported in a single day in Ohio since 2,216 on April 14.

Also, the number of daily cases has been higher than 1,000 for seven of the past nine days. The two exceptions were 857 Sunday and 895 Monday. Because of a lag in reporting over weekends, numbers on Sundays and Mondays have been the lowest of any days of the week since the start of the pandemic.

When face mask mandates were lifted in Ohio on June 2, 334 COVID-19 cases were reported that day. June had the fewest reported cases — 9,390 — than any other full month since the start of the pandemic in early March 2020.

As of Wednesday, 9,545 cases were reported in Ohio in just the past seven days.

Gov. Mike DeWine has declined to reimpose a mask mandate and instead urges people to get vaccinated. Several stores are requiring their employees, but not their customers, to wear a mask.

The spread largely is caused by the highly contagious delta variant of the virus among those unvaccinated, health officials say.

While the number of Ohioans vaccinated against COVID-19 has slowed greatly in the past few months, the 11,794 who at least started getting the shot during the 24 hours ending at 6 a.m. Wednesday is the most for a day since 13,483 on June 4, according to ODH statistics.

The 2,167 new COVID-19 cases reported Wednesday is up from the daily average of 939 for the past 21 days, according to the ODH. The 21-day average Tuesday was 855. About a month ago, Ohio was averaging about 260 cases per day.

VACCINATIONS

There were 5,801,034 people, 49.63 percent of the state’s population, who at least had started getting inoculated as of 6 a.m. Wednesday, including 11,794 in the previous 24 hours, according to the ODH.

In Mahoning County, 48.12 percent of the population (110,053 people) had received at least one dose, while 45.85 percent of the population in Trumbull County (90,767 people) and 38.76 percent in Columbiana County (39,491 people) had as of 6 a.m. Wednesday, according to the ODH.

There were 5,407,322 people, 46.26 percent of the state’s population, who finished the vaccinations as of 6 a.m. Wednesday, including 6,113 in the prior 24 hours.

In Mahoning County, 44.78 percent of the population (102,395 people) had completed the process, and 42.38 percent of the population in Trumbull (83,905 people) and 36.32 percent of the population in Columbiana (37,006 people) had as of 6 a.m. Wednesday.

dskolnick@tribtoday.com

dskolnick@vindy.com