Coronavirus In Ohio: 1,277 New Cases, 21 Deaths

COLUMBUS, OH — Ohio's surge of new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continued Wednesday, the state health department confirmed.

Over the past 24 hours, at least 1,277 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed across the state, the Ohio Department of Health announced. At least 106 people were hospitalized because of the virus during the same time period.

There were at least 21 COVID-19-related deaths in Ohio in the past 24 hours, the state health department said. Twenty-six people were admitted to intensive care units because of the virus.

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Seven Ohio counties will implement mandatory mask policies at 6 p.m. on Wednesday. The seven impacted counties are Hamilton, Butler, Franklin, Huron, Montgomery, Trumbull and Cuyahoga.

"Those in counties under a Red Alert Level 3 Public Emergency have the risk of very high exposure and spread of COVID-19. You are encouraged to limit activities as much as possible," Gov. Mike DeWine said on Twitter.

Here are all of Wednesday's COVID-19 numbers from the Ohio Department of Health:

• New cases: 1,277
• New deaths: 21
• New hospitalizations: 106
• New ICU admissions 26