Ohio changes wedding restrictions after 32 of 83 guests at event contract coronavirus

Ohio has revised its rules for large gatherings following at least 32 people who attended a single ceremony that tested positive for the coronavirus.

The state spent much of the pandemic preventing gatherings of more than 10 people, but weddings and funerals were exempt. In revised order Tuesday, Gov. Mike DeWineMike DeWineOvernight Healthcare: Top Hospitals and Physician Associations Call on Trump to Share COVID-19 Information with Biden | Biotech group CEO says lawsuits are underway to stop Trump’s drug proposal, Ohio, which imposes a 10 p.m. curfew starting Thursday, Midwestern governors release video highlighting the importance of social distancing, masking as cases rise MORE (R) has banned more than 10 people at a single table at wedding receptions and said attendees should wear masks at all times except when eating and drinking, according to the Washington Post.

“Despite the health order limiting mass gatherings to 10 people signed in April, we have seen rampant spread of the virus following banquets, wedding receptions and social gatherings after the funeral,” DeWine said in a report. communicated. . “We have seen a great tragedy associated with such events. It’s not the ceremonies that are causing the problem. It’s the party after.

Thirty-two of 83 attendees at a recent wedding in the Cincinnati area tested positive for the virus, according to the newspaper, the latest of several marriages across the country linked to outbreaks of the virus.

“I didn’t think nearly half of our wedding guests were going to get sick,” Mikayla Bishop, the bride, told the newspaper. “You are in the moment. You’re having fun. You no longer think about COVID. “

People who tested positive included the couple’s three grandparents, who were the only attendees to wear masks throughout the event and who did not participate in the dance, for which none of the attendees did. masked.

Although the country as a whole has seen an increase in cases in recent weeks, states in the Midwest have been particularly affected. Ohio reported 2,915 new cases on Oct. 31, the bishops’ wedding day, with more than double that amount, 7,079, on Tuesday. At least 5,772 Ohio residents have died from the virus overall.