Governor Deploying National Guard To Ease Hospital Staffing Issues

Governor DeWine has mobilized 1,050 members of the Ohio National Guard to help relieve the hospital staffing strain caused by the rising number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients.

Of the mobilized guard members, approximately 150 are highly-trained medical professionals and will deploy to help meet critical needs at hospitals and testing locations.

The remaining 900 guard members will help with patient transport, housekeeping, and food services.

Guard members will be brought on duty beginning on Monday.

The governor’s office said on Friday that more than 4,700 people were currently hospitalized in Ohio fighting COVID-19, which equates to one in every five hospital patients.

That’s the highest number of people hospitalized with COVID this year, and the number of hospitalized patients is rapidly approaching an all-time high.

The governor said, due to the increase in COVID-19 hospital admissions many hospitals have been forced to postpone elective surgeries.

Blanchard Valley Hospital in Findlay on Friday said that it is still doing elective surgeries.

And the hospital said it’s too early to know how many National Guard members will be assisting locally and what that support will look like.