OHIO — Ohio hit a new record high for COVID-19 hospitalizations on Wednesday with 5,356, topping the previous record of 5,308 set Dec. 15, 2020, according to data from the Ohio Hospital Association. 

What You Need To Know

  • Ohio’s COVID-19 hospitalizations hit an all-time high on Wednesday

  • As of Wednesday, more than 5,300 people are hospitalized throughout the state with COVID-19

  • Northeast Ohio continues to see the most COVID-19 hospitalizations as the area continues to set new records

  • Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine is deploying 1,250 more Ohio National Guard members to combat the pandemic

In response, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced that 1,250 additional Ohio National Guard members will be deployed in addition to the 1,050 that are currently addressing the pandemic.

The combination of increased COVID-19 hospitalizations in addition to rising cases among staff has put a strain on hospitals especially in northeast Ohio, according to Cleveland Clinic chief of medical operations Dr. Robert Wylie. Wylie said as of Wednesday, 2,700 workers are out due to being in isolation or quarantine. 

Wylie was hopeful that updated Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance could allow for hundreds of employees to return to work in the coming days.

DeWine said that since June 1, well after COVID-19 vaccines were widely accessible, 92.5% of hospitalizations in the state were among those not vaccinated for the virus.

On Monday, Ohio topped 5,000 COVID-19 inpatient hospitalizations for the first time since Dec. 17, 2020, and has continued to climb since. 

The OHA reports that one in four of those currently hospitalized throughout Ohio are COVID-19 positive. The OHA said 1,228 hospital patients are in an intensive care unit in Ohio. Overall, one-third of ICU patients statewide are positive for the virus. 

The OHA splits the state into seven regions. The northeast Ohio region, which includes the Cleveland area, notes record levels of COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU patients. As of Wednesday, northeast Ohio had 1,556 people COVID hospitalizations with 349 people in the ICU. A year ago, northeast Ohio peaked at 1,064 hospitalizations. 

The number of hospital patients in northeast Ohio with COVID-19 has nearly doubled during the month of December. 

Nearly 1,050 members of the Ohio National Guard have been stationed throughout northeast Ohio to help the region battle the onslaught of COVID-19 cases. Along with being positioned at hospitals, Guard members have been operating mass COVID-19 testing sites in Summit and Cuyahoga counties. 

According to the OHA, Ohio’s COVID-19 hospitalizations steadily declined following the December 2020 surge, dropping to a low of 205 on July 7, 2021. After a fall peak of 3,742 hospitalizations in October, the state dropped to an autumn low of 2,202 COVID patients on Nov. 7. Since then, COVID-19 hospitalizations have increased. 

The Cleveland Clinic said last week that the majority, nearly 80%, of those in its hospitals with COVID-19 are unvaccinated. The 20% who are vaccinated are those who are immunocompromised with cancer, have had transplants or have a chronic condition, the Cleveland Clinic said.

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