A rundown of how coronavirus has affected Central Ohio

Arnold Sports Fest partially cancelled

Gov. DeWine announced that the athletic competition will still go on but without spectators or the trade show because of coronavirus fears, the state and city announced Tuesday. Spectators will only be allowed to attend the Arnold Classic finals.

“Things are rapidly evolving, and given the uniqueness of this particular event, we must do anything we can to slow the spread of the disease into Ohio and keep our guests and citizens as safe as we can,” DeWine said, according to The Dispatch.

It’s a sad day for me and everyone at the @ArnoldSports team. But we will always put our fans’ health first. After discussions with @GovMikeDeWine, @MayorGinther, and the CDC, we will be postponing the expo because we can’t risk bringing 250,000 people together with #COVID19. pic.twitter.com/Fuzcmapxiy
— Arnold (@Schwarzenegger) March 3, 2020

Health officials screening Arnold athletes at airport

More than 22,000 athletes from 80 different countries will begin competing in the Arnold Classic starting Thursday. Columbus Public Health Department has set up a booth in the John Glenn Columbus International Airport to screen all Arnold athletes, judges, sponsors, and performers to mitigate the risk of the coronavirus spreading in Columbus, reports ABC6.

Testing kits

The Centers for Disease Control is expected to provide the Ohio Department of Health with coronavirus testing kits this week, reports ABC6. After validating the kits, the health department will begin testing patients.

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Monitoring elderly population

With five of the nine coronavirus deaths in the USA occurring in an assisted living facility near Seattle, local nursing homes are preparing by issuing informative memos to staff, posting CDC guidelines around the buildings, purchasing more medical supplies, ordering protective equipment for employees, and even setting up a coronavirus hotline. Read more at ABC6.

Kroger begins rationing healthcare products

According to a notice posted on the company website, Kroger is setting a limit on the number of products consumers can purchase amid flu and coronavirus concerns. See below for the statement.

“Due to high demand and to support all customers, we will be limiting the number of Sanitization, Cold and Flu related products to 5 each per order. Your order may be modified at time of pickup or delivery.”

Ohio Department of Health continues to test potential cases of coronavirus in Ohio

So far, there are no confirmed cases of coronavirus in the state, but the Ohio Department of Health is currently waiting on test results for one potential patient. Officials per WKSU say the Ohioan under investigation exhibits symptoms of respiratory illness and either recently traveled to China or interacted with someone known to have the virus. Seven people in Ohio have been tested for coronavirus, but all have been negative.

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