COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio Department of Health on Wednesday provided an updated COVID-19 travel advisory map to include 19 states where Ohioans are advised against traveling due to high positive testing rates.
For weeks now, Ohio has been on its own travel advisory map as positive testing rates reach above 15% in the state. The positivity rate is an indicator of how much COVID-19 there is in a community.
The advisory is intended for both leisure and business travel, one that the department of health wants Ohioans and out-of-state travelers to follow.
Based on a 7-day rolling average positivity rate as of Jan. 13, the 19 states on this week’s list are:
- Idaho: 48.1%
- Pennsylvania: 40.3%
- Alabama:40.3%
- Iowa:40%
- Kansas: 38.2%
- South Dakota: 33.3%
- Kentucky: 26%
- Oklahoma: 23.2%
- Georgia: 23%
- Utah: 21%
- Texas: 21%
- Arkansas: 20%
- Tennessee: 20%
- Ohio: 17%
- Nevada: 17%
- Arizona: 16.4%
- Missouri: 16.2%
- South Carolina: 16%
- Virginia: 15.2 %
On this week’s map, Mississippi and Wyoming are shaded gray because they are reporting irregularities with the total number of tests performed this past week.
If you have to self-quarantine, these are the following precautions you should take according to the ODH:
- If you live in a home with other people who did not travel with you, stay in a separate room. If this is not possible, wear a face mask when you are in the same room and stay at least six feet away from others.
- Remain at home and avoid all in-person activities. This includes work, grocery stores and pharmacies, public events, and public places.
- Do not leave home except to seek medical care. If you need to see a provider for reasons other than a medical emergency, please call in advance and discuss the care you need.
- In the event of a medical emergency, call 9-1-1. Indicate that you are in home quarantine for novel coronavirus exposure. Keep a face mask on until you are asked by a health care provider to remove it
- Do not have visitors in your home.
- Do not use public transportation, taxis, or ride-shares.
Additional Coronavirus information and resources:
See complete coverage on our Coronavirus Continuing Coverage page.
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Click here for a page with resources including a COVID-19 overview from the CDC, details on cases in Ohio, a timeline of Governor Mike DeWine's orders since the outbreak, coronavirus' impact on Northeast Ohio, and link to more information from the Ohio Department of Health, the Cuyahoga County Board of Health, the CDC and the WHO.
See data visualizations showing the impact of coronavirus in Ohio, including county-by-county maps, charts showing the spread of the disease, and more.
The CDC and the Ohio Department of Health are now recommending the use of cloth face coverings in public to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Read more about the CDC's recommendation here. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to make a face maskfrom common household materials, without having to know how to sew.
View a global coronavirus tracker with data from Johns Hopkins University.
