COLUMBUS, Ohio _ Gov. Mike DeWine announced Thursday the liberation of more coronavirus-closed Ohio businesses, including dine-in restaurants, bars and "hands-on" barber shops and hair salons.
The governor said restaurants and bars can begin serving patrons on their outdoor patios and outside dining areas on May 15.
Inside service, including for meals, will not be permitted for two more weeks _ until May 21 _ with virus precautions such as 6-foot social distancing between tables.
Servers will be required to wear faces masks, with cooks and backroom employees exempt. Guests could be asked to wear masks. Capacity limits could be imposed based on restaurant and bar space.
A host of personal service businesses also are permitted to reopen a week from Friday, such as nail salons, barber and hair salons, day spas and similar businesses, after enacting "best practices."
Barbers, stylists and cosmetologists will ware masks while dealing with customers, who could be asked to wait outside until the time of their appointment and to enter alone, except for children and caregivers.
All had been closed since March 15 under a stay-at-home order closing unessential businesses. Restaurants and taverns were permitted to sell food at drive-thrus and by carryout and delivery.
"We need to do two things at once _ bring back our economy and at the same time, stay safe," DeWine said. "How we open up is so very, very important," he said stressing the need for virus safeguards.
Meanwhile, Ohio recorded 555 new coronavirus cases and 46 additional COVID-19 deaths Thursday.
The confirmed and probable daily numbers from the Ohio Department of Health brought the pandemic case total to 22,131 during the past two months and increased the number of Ohioans who have died from the infection to 1,271.
The case numbers were similar to Wednesday's daily total of 607 cases _ continuing a plateau in new infections with no sustained decrease. The fatalities, though, come with a timing caveat.
Two of the three largest daily death totals _ 90 on Wednesday and 79 on Tuesday _ came this week, but included many older deaths not immediately reported. (The largest daily death total of 138 occurred on April 29.)
Despite those totals, the death toll for the first six days of May totaled 75 _ an average of slightly under 13 a day _ through Wednesday. Ninety-two percent of deaths have been among those age 60 and older, with half of deaths among those age 80 or more.
Franklin County, the state's most populous, now has recorded nearly 800 more total virus cases (3,377) than any other county. The county reported 140 new cases Thursday and eight more deaths, escalating its fatalities to 107.
DeWine has outlined what he calls an "aggressive" increase in testing to restrain an expected increase in coronavirus cases as the state phases in the reopening of its economy and Ohioans confined under a stay-at-home order begin to hit workplaces and stores.
The governor signaled earlier this week that he could announce more business reopenings on Thursday after working groups submitted recommendations on virus precautions that should be adopted.
When DeWine announced April 27 that office-based companies and others could recall workers beginning last Monday and that retail stores could reopen this coming Tuesday, many "nonessential" businesses were left behind.
Led by dine-in restaurants and bars _ which are allowed to operate through carry-out and delivery _ a sizable segment of Ohio's economy remained closed indefinitely. With dine-in service closed since March 15, restaurants had lobbied to reopen their dining rooms on May 15.
The reopenings unveiled previously did not include "hands on" services such as hair salons, day spas, nail salons, barber shops, tattoo parlors, body piercing locations, tanning facilities and massage therapy offices.
The closure list continued to include day care centers, senior centers, entertainment and recreation venues (including movie theaters and amusement parks), gyms and fitness centers, casinos, fairs and festivals, spectator and recreational sports and campgrounds.
A prohibition against gatherings of more than 10 people remains in place.
Reopened businesses are required to ensure 6-foot social distancing and require employees to wear face masks to help contain the spread of coronavirus. DeWine originally required customers visiting retail stores to wear masks, but then reversed himself.
While acknowledging a risk of increasing the spread of COVID-19, DeWine said Ohio had to get back to work to jump start its ravaged economy, which has included more than 1.1 million Ohioans losing jobs.
But, House Republicans have rebelled against what they denounce as too slow of a reopening, passing a bill that would give lawmakers say-so over stay-at-home orders surpassing 14 days. The Republican DeWine says he will veto the bill if it also passes the Senate.
Ohio officials credit the stay-at-home order, first issued March 23 and later extended, with depressing the growth of coronavirus infections and avoiding overwhelming the state's medical system.
Stay-at-home was continued until May 29, but now permits Ohioans to travel to work and, when stores open Tuesday, to begin shopping.
The pandemic fallout devastated state income and sales tax collections, prompting DeWine on Tuesday to announce $775 million in state budget cuts through June 30, including a $465 million loss in state funding to schools and public universities and colleges.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced on Thursday the award of nearly $17.5 million to 51 Ohio health centers to expand COVID-19 testing.
