Coronavirus Update – Week Ending March 6

Here’s the latest regarding the coronavirus (COVID-2019):

• This week, Gov. Mike DeWine held a conference call with OMA President Eric Burkland and leaders of other business organizations to provide an update on actions and planning efforts by state officials. This website provides real-time, Ohio-specific information regarding the coronavirus.
• As of Thursday, there were still no confirmed cases in Ohio, but three people were under investigation. Seven Ohioans have been tested but are negative, and 255 Ohio residents remain in self-quarantine, having traveled recently to China.
• Ohio will be able to test for coronavirus starting late this weekend after it received testing kits from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to reports. Until now, the state health department had been forced to defer tests to the CDC, which took up to five days.
• The National Association of Manufacturers has published a comprehensive site with useful information.
• The Ohio Department of Health has composed this checklist to prepare your household for an outbreak of any infectious disease.
• Several OMA Connections Partners have published guidance for employers:
  • Roetzel says employers should do these four things to prepare for coronavirus.
  • Calfee has produced a practical list of steps to help prevent workplace exposure and plan for a widespread outbreak.
  • Dinsmore offers this guidance on what employers must know about quarantines and preventing the spread of disease at work.
  • And Clark Schaefer Hackett has published a post on the coronavirus’ impact on the global manufacturing supply chain and how manufacturers can respond.
• This interactive map by Johns Hopkins shows the location of every reported COVID-19 case in the world. At last check, more than half of the cases were listed as “recovered.”

The OMA continues to monitor updates from the Ohio Department of Health, as well as the latest situation summaries from the CDC. 3/5/2020