Gov. DeWine says he expects to beat May 1 vaccine deadline during stop in Maumee

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) - During a stop in Maumee on Saturday, Gov. Mike DeWine said he thinks Ohio can beat President Biden’s proposed deadline for making vaccines available to all adults. The president directed all states to expand vaccine eligibility to everyone by May 1 during his primetime address on Thursday.

The governor did not go into details on when he expects to further open up Ohio’s vaccine eligibility but did say there would be further announcements in the coming days. On Friday, Michigan announced it would be making the vaccine available to anyone over the age of 16 starting on April 5. Currently, vaccines are available to all Ohioans over the aged 50 and over, as well as those with certain pre-existing conditions.

Gov. DeWine was in Maumee to tour the Lucas County Rec Center, a current vaccine clinic that is set to become a mass vaccination site in the coming weeks. According to Lucas County Health Commissioner Eric Zgodzinski, the site would be capable of administering up to 20,000 vaccines a week at full capacity. At the moment, the county does not have the necessary amount of vaccine to accommodate that number.

The stop was part of a small Saturday tour of vaccine locations, including one in Hancock County earlier in the morning, itself part of a larger tour of vaccine sites across the state. The governor was joined by his wife, the health commissioner, Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz, State Rep. Theresa Fedor, Lucas County Commissioner Gary L. Byers.

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