COLUMBUS, Ohio — Nearly 20 million personal protective equipment (PPE) items have been shipped to Ohio schools since the beginning of the school year in an effort to support in-school learning across the state.
The Ohio Department of Administrative Services (DAS) and Ohio Department of Health (ODH) began partnering at the beginning of the school year to deliver supplies to each of Ohio’s 51 Educational Service Centers (ESCs) for use in Ohio schools. To date, ESCs have received 11,368,000 masks, 8,243,000 gloves, 65,000 gowns, 14,360 face shields, and 720 gallons of hand sanitizer.
“Thanks to this partnership with ODH, millions of PPE items are reducing the spread of the virus and strengthening Governor DeWine’s efforts to keep kids in school,” said DAS Director Kathleen C. Madden.
ODH recently released updated guidance on out-of-school quarantining in an effort to keep kids learning in school as much as possible.
“Out-of-school quarantining has the unintended consequence of reducing in-school learning and can place an added strain on parents, schools, and local health departments,” ODH Director Bruce Vanderhoff, MD, MBA, explained during a press conference announcing the updated quarantine guidance last week. “While vaccination and masking remain critical components of ensuring a safe school environment, to support in-school learning, we offer an in-school alternative to out-of-school quarantining for students and school staff exposed to COVID-19 in school settings and during school-related activities.”
DAS and ODH continue to work with the ESCs to assist with the logistics of the distribution of the PPE. While supplies remain, districts will have an additional five opportunities through December to order more items for their schools. DAS and ODH will also continue to distribute PPE to health care providers, libraries, social service agencies, and others in need of this vital equipment.
