The state of Ohio will be changing the process of adding COVID-19 cases to the daily count starting on Tuesday. Gov. Mike DeWine says the change will mean a one-time "significant" spike in cases.
Ohio has been adding COVID-19 cases to the daily tally using what's known as PCR testing data. But the state hasn’t added an increase in less sensitive antigen tests from the federal government without additional confirmation known as an epidemiological link.
In a Monday press conference, DeWine said Ohio will follow CDC guidance by adding those tests to the final count immediately, which will result in releasing a backlog of tests.
"To be clear, all these backlog tests will not translate into new cases, not all of them, they'll be checked and duplicate records will be removed," DeWine says.
The state will provide additional data linking confirmed cases to test types on its online dashboard tool.
DeWine also announced that the state will be extending the 10 p.m. curfew, which is set to expire on Thursday. He says more details on that extension will be coming soon.
