COLUMBUS (WCMH) – Twelve counties out of Ohio’s 88 are currently sitting at red Level 3 on the state’s public health advisory system, including three in central Ohio.
Franklin, Licking, and Fairfield counties remain at Level 3 for meeting the CDC threshold of high incidence of COVID-19, with Gov. Mike DeWine saying the three counties have shown more than 100 new cases of the virus per 100,000 residents over the last week.
According to DeWine, Franklin County had 126 new cases per 100,000 residents over the last week. Those new cases, however, are down from last week, when the county reported 142 cases per 100,000.
Fairfield County reported 114 new cases per 100,000 residents. The governor did not reveal numbers for Licking County, only saying it met CDC guidelines for cases per capita and new cases in non-congregate settings.
Three new counties – Claremont, Brown and Muskingum – saw their level increased from orange Level 2 to red Level 3 over the last week.
Allen and Medina counties saw their levels decreased to orange Level 2 from Level 3 last week.
The nine counties remaining at Level 3 this week are:
- Cuyahoga
- Erie
- Fairfield
- Franklin
- Licking
- Lucas
- Marion
- Mercer
- Montgomery
The Ohio Public Health Advisory System consists of four levels:
- Level 1 — Yellow — active exposure and spread of COVID-19
- Level 2 — Orange — increased exposure and spread of COVID-19
- Level 3 — Red — very high exposure and spread of COVID-19
- Level 4 — Purple — severe exposure and spread of COVID -19
Since the Ohio Public Health Advisory System was established in July, no county has reached Level 4, the most severe level of COVID-19 spread.