COLUMBUS, Ohio — At Ohio Governor Mike DeWine’s press conference Thursday, we learned that nationally a record 3.3 million people have filed for unemployment.
- Many are experiencing system crashes, slow bandwidth and dead ends
- Lt. Governor Jon Husted says the system is being overrun right now
- Governor DeWine says there’s enough money to go around for everyone who finds themselves out of a job
In Ohio, were getting our first look at how many are out of work as a result of coronavirus here in the state.
“The week ending March 21st, we had 187,780 claims. To put this in perspective, in all of 2019 we had 369,594, so as you can see, the burden on the system, the number of people that filed, is an amazing number,” said Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted.
As the number of unemployment claims flood into the state system, many are experiencing system crashes, slow bandwidth and dead ends.
Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted says the system is being overrun right now and it may take some patience to get through.
“Just because you don’t get through today, or if there was a delay, know that they will make the benefits retroactive to when you qualified for it,” said Husted.
Governor Mike DeWine, who was just granted access to the $2.7 billion rainy day fund, says there’s enough to go around for everyone who finds themselves out of a job.
“People should not worry. The money will be there, and they should continue to apply,” said DeWine.
The state is experiencing a parallel surge of unemployment and new COVID-19 cases, which could bring the state to a standstill in the coming weeks.
“Its not if, but when. We will surge at our peak. We can expect six thousand to eight thousand new cases a day,” said Health Director Dr. Amy Acton.
However, Dr. Acton says what we’re doing now is slowing that surge and collective efforts are the key to giving all of us a fighting chance.
“We have, by our collective actions in Ohio, decreased that impact on our healthcare system by anywhere from 50 to 75 percent. That’s crucial, but we’ve got to do it even more because we are buying time. The further we spread out that spread of infection, the more time our hospitals are getting ready and doubling their capacity,” Acton said.