Study: Few Ohioans have COVID-19 antibodies

A study released yesterday by the Ohio Department of Health and Ohio State University found that, as of July, the prevalence of COVID-19 antibodies in Ohio was relatively low (Source: “Coronavirus: Antibody study shows prevalence low in Ohio adults, many still susceptible,” Dayton Daily News, Oct. 2).

The results of the antibody study, which included 720 randomly selected volunteers, found that 0.9% had active COVID-19 and 1.5% had evidence of antibodies when tested over 20 days in July. Blood samples and nasal swabs were collected to test for the presence of antibodies and active COVID-19. Given Ohio’s population size, those percentages would equal about 101,700 active COVID-19 cases and 169,500 Ohioans with antibodies, which means more than 11.1 million out of 11.3 million Ohioans would still be susceptible to getting the virus.

Also yesterday, Gov. Mike DeWine announced that there are 11 counties at level 3 in the weekly COVID-19 Ohio Public Health Advisory System map, the most the state has had at one time since September. There were four counties that moved up to level 3, including Richland County, which is also on a watch list for counties near level 4.