The circumstances of this pandemic continue to change very quickly including how data is reported and shared. The decisions we have made at Franklin County Public Health (FCPH) are based on state guidance, state law, protected health information requirements and other considerations all balanced with a principle to be as transparent as possible with our community.
- Per a state directive, FCPH is providing the names and addresses of individuals who are confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases and who are still in isolation to Franklin County EMA/911 who are then sharing it with our Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) across the county.
- FCPH has issued isolation and quarantine orders to 240 individuals since March 18.
- Like all COVID-19 cases, those linked to a long-term care facility continue to be reported to the Ohio Department of Health (ODH). Per a new state directive, a breakdown of the long-term care facility data will now be shared on the ODH website every Wednesday. It will include the name of each facility (by county) and will break out the number of residents/patients and the number of staff in each facility. FCPH will be providing the same data on our website each Wednesday. ODH will also be providing the total number of deaths linked to long-term care facilities by county (which will include FCPH and Columbus Public Health numbers combined). FCPH will not be reporting the number of deaths separate from what is released by ODH.
- FCPH is now posting a daily epidemiology report on its website which includes a breakdown of cases by zip code as well as a detailed description of those cases (e.g. symptom onset dates, median age, hospitalizations, race, etc.)
As directives are likely to change in the coming weeks FCPH respectfully asks that all of its partners be patient and understand that our goal is to protect the public health and only release such information within the confines of R.C. 3701.17.