COVID-19 Updates
Interpreting the Pandemic for Ohio and Midwest Communities

In April of 2020, Midstory’s data team pivoted all its operations to bring important and timely COVID-19 data to the public in a time of crisis and uncertainty. We began this project with a simple desire to better understand the current pandemic situation and to keep Ohioans and Midwesterners informed with posts focused on counts of cases, deaths and hospitalizations locally and regionally. As time went on, we discovered just how much COVID-19 has affected all aspects of our lives, and we reflected this in the various topics we reported on, including unemployment, demography, economics, education, voting, policies, hospital occupancy, vaccinations, variants, travel and mobility. Our goal is not only to inform the public with accurate data, but also to provide a proper interpretation that can serve the needs of the community in this critical time.

In 2022, we launched a new COVID-19 dashboard to provide a more robust weekly local, state and national update as the COVID-19 virus evolved. Entering 2023, the pandemic is behind us, but we also know that COVID will continue to be a part of our everyday lives, although in less severe ways. In response to these changing times, we transitioned our COVID updates to a monthly basis. Later, when we learned that the Public Health Emergency (PHE) would expire in May 2023, we decided that now is the time to take a pause on our regular updates, and for the time being we'll be publishing our last dashboard in April.

Over the past three years, it has been a privilege to provide updates and interpretations on the pandemic for Ohio and Midwest communities, and for you to stay informed and be able to make the best decisions for you and your family. Over time, if a need arises again for timely COVID-19 information, we'll pick back up with these updates. Thank you for following along with us through these unprecedented times. - The Midstory Data Team

Takeaways

  • COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, deaths and vaccinations in Ohio decreased throughout the month of March. Average daily cases are about 1,000, which decreased by 23% compared to last month. Average daily deaths decreased by 37%.
  • As of March 30, 65 counties in Ohio were low-risk for COVID-19, 13 were medium risk and no county was rated as high-risk. Lucas County had a low-risk level.
  • Average daily cases, hospitalizations and deaths in the U.S. also continued to decrease throughout March. Average daily cases were around 22k and decreased by 43% compared to last month. Average daily deaths decreased by 12%, with less than 300 Americans still dying from COVID everyday.
  • COVID-19 cases per 100k in the U.S. in the past seven days ranged between 19 – 85 cases, except for Oklahoma, which had 138 cases per 100k due to an adjustment of previously reported data. The CDC reported zero cases for Delaware, Florida and Mississippi because of technical issues.

Note: Due to a likely delay in reporting, cases, hospitalizations and vaccinations in Ohio were lower than expected, and data from the past few days were not included in this update.

Takeaways

  • COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, deaths and vaccinations in Ohio decreased throughout the month of March. Average daily cases are about 1,000, which decreased by 23% compared to last month. Average daily deaths decreased by 37%.
  • As of March 30, 65 counties in Ohio were low-risk for COVID-19, 13 were medium risk and no county was rated as high-risk. Lucas County had a low-risk level.
  • Average daily cases, hospitalizations and deaths in the U.S. also continued to decrease throughout March. Average daily cases were around 22k and decreased by 43% compared to last month. Average daily deaths decreased by 12%, with less than 300 Americans still dying from COVID everyday.
  • COVID-19 cases per 100k in the U.S. in the past seven days ranged between 19 – 85 cases, except for Oklahoma, which had 138 cases per 100k due to an adjustment of previously reported data. The CDC reported zero cases for Delaware, Florida and Mississippi because of technical issues.

Note: Due to a likely delay in reporting, cases, hospitalizations and vaccinations in Ohio were lower than expected, and data from the past few days were not included in this update.

About the Data

Midstory uses data from multiple sources, including the Ohio Department of Health, the New York Times, Our World in Data and NPR, and brings them together into one central location. All data is subject to change as new data becomes available, and may not accurately reflect the actual number of cases, deaths, hospitalizations and vaccinations. Our data excludes any anomalies that may appear from delays in reporting to government agencies.