Ohio Borrows $3.1 Billion For Unemployment Payments

COLUMBUS, OH — Ohio borrowed money this week to meet its unemployment obligation. The state received a line of credit of $3.1 billion from the U.S. Department of Labor.

"That total exceeds what we think we will need to pay out in benefits. It is essentially a line of credit, so we asked for greater authority than we currently think that we will need so that we have it just in case we need it," Gov. Mike DeWine said.

More than 1.3 million Ohioans have filed for unemployment over the past 12 weeks. That's more unemployment claims than the state has dealt with over the past three years combined, the Ohio Capital Journal noted.

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Ohio is not the first state to borrow money from the federal government to meet its unemployment obligations during the COVID-19 crisis. California and Texas have also borrowed money from the U.S. Department of Labor.

"We have done this before in Ohio," DeWine said, noting state officials borrowed a similar amount of money from the U.S. Department of Labor during the 2007-2009 financial recession.

Tuesday's COVID-19 Numbers

DeWine also announced the latest COVID-19 data report for Ohio on Tuesday.

Officials confirmed 434 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, the state health department announced. That's up versus Monday's reported new cases and the state's three-week average for new cases per day.

DeWine said there is noting "particularly alarming" about the state's COVID-19 numbers, since they have largely plateaued.

Here are Tuesday's other key COVID-19 states in Ohio:

• New deaths: 24
• New hospitalizations: 59
• New intensive care admissions: 8

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• After Months Of Questions, Ohio Medicaid To Start Paying Pharmacists For Coronavirus Testing