Today in Ohio, the daily news podcast of cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer.
CLEVELAND, Ohio — A three-judge panel declined to issue arrest warrants for Donald Trump and JD Vance in a case brought by a citizen seeking their arrest and trial over their unproven claims about Haitian immigrants in Springfield eating pets.
We’re talking about punting the case to Clark County Prosecutor Daniel Driscoll for further investigation on Today in Ohio.
Editor Chris Quinn hosts our daily half-hour news podcast, with editorial board member Lisa Garvin, impact editor Leila Atassi and content director Laura Johnston.
You’ve been sending Chris lots of thoughts and suggestions on our from-the-newsroom text account, in which he shares what we’re thinking about at cleveland.com. You can sign up here: https://joinsubtext.com/chrisquinn.
You can now join the conversation. Call 833-648-6329 (833-OHTODAY) if you’d like to leave a message we can play on the podcast.
Here’s what else we’re asking about today:
The effort to bring criminal charges against Donald Trump and JD Vance for their damaging lies about Haitian refugees in Springfield has hit a hurdle. What is it?
While Trump and Vance continue to vilify refugees and immigrants, Cuyahoga County has been operating a welcome center for them this year. The center is expanding to offer a new service to the newcomers. What is it, and how much will it cost?
Today is the first day of early voting in Ohio, where you cast your ballot for your presidential and Senate candidates and then ignore all the ads from here on in. We also have the all-important Issue 1 to end gerrymandering. What do people need to know about how to vote early, in person or by mail?
After United Airlines closed its hub in Cleveland more than a decade ago, Spirit Airlines was the first to fill the void. Over the years, though, it has been overtaken by Frontier. Today, we have two airlines going in opposite directions. What’s the latest bad news from Spirit, while Frontier just announced another Cleveland expansion?
A former star quarterback at Ohio State University has watched current day players prosper under new rules allowing them to be paid for the use of their names and images. Now that quarterback is suing Ohio State. What’s his claim, and what does he want?
Why was the Navy Destroyer called the Nantucket in the Cleveland harbor Monday?
After he was fired as the MetroHealth CEO based on allegations that he gave himself hundreds of thousands of dollars in bonuses to which he was not entitled, Akram Boutros sued the hospital, alleging they conducted business in violation of Ohio’s open meetings act. Why did a judge throw out that lawsuit this week?
We talked last week about pneumonia’s odd circulation of late, in the warmer months, filling intensive care units with patients. What can we expect in the months ahead with the flu, RSV and other viruses that spread most commonly in winter?
We mentioned that today is the first day of early voting. What are the more interesting local tax issues on the ballot?
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Read the automated transcript below. Because it’s a computer-generated transcript, it contains many errors and misspellings.
Chris Quinn (00:00.797)
Immigration is one of the top issues of this year’s presidential campaign, and it’s a subject we’re talking about on Today in Ohio. It’s the news podcast discussion from cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer. I’m Chris Quinton here with Lisa Garvin, Leila Tasi and Laura Johnston. And let’s get started. The effort to bring criminal charges against Donald Trump and JD Vance for their damaging lies about Haitian refugees in Springfield.
has hit a hurdle, Laura, what is it?
Laura (00:32.718)
Well, rather than giving this case to one judge, it went before a three judge panel in Springfield. There are three common please court judges, sorry, municipal court judges, Valerie Wilt, Steven Shoemaker, and Daniel Carey. And what they decided is that it has to go to the prosecutor, that they are not going to issue arrest warrants for Donald Trump and JD Vance, and that there isn’t enough evidence. So they need further investigation.
I mean, I really did not think a judge in Springfield was going to force the arrest of Donald Trump. Like that seemed far-fetched to me in the beginning. But basically they’re saying this is a serious matter of significant public interest, but that there’s a lot of first amendment free speech rights in this case and that there is no proof either way. So they don’t have probable cause to arrest.
to issue arrest warrants and the candidates have a right to political speech.
Chris Quinn (01:29.565)
Yeah, I just saw this as cowardice by the judges because there is proof. They lied repeatedly about what was going on in Springfield. They caused lots of damage and the law is the law. There is a law that says if somebody brings this to you and there’s evidence, you should do it. And the First Amendment doesn’t cover anything.
You’re not allowed to yell fire in a crowded theater. And this is the equivalent of that. It’s actually worse than that because there’s a lot more people in Springfield than there are in a crowded theater. They they punted and the way they did it instead of having a single judge review it, which is their system. They all did it together for cover and punted it because they don’t want to deal with anything controversial, but they should have. some of the statements they made are just not honest. I mean,
Laura (01:52.451)
Mm-hmm.
Laura (02:13.72)
Mm-hmm.
Chris Quinn (02:19.891)
What JD Vance and Donald Trump did was despicable. They caused untold harm to a lot of people with their lies as they tried to justify making immigrants into America’s new vermin. And there is a price to pay. I always thought this would be more of a defamation case because I think the people of Springfield can show as a class, their home values have been damaged and the shopping district’s been damaged. And there’s a real financial piece to that. One,
Laura (02:39.278)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa (02:39.943)
Mm-hmm.
Chris Quinn (02:49.097)
They were reckless with what they said and which which, you know, gets around their First Amendment protection. And there’s real damage you could show real financial damage. I was surprised that they want the criminal route, but they had a decent strategy. And now that’s going to go to the prosecutor, nothing will come of it. So we’ll have to see what local attorney Sabot Chandra does next.
Lisa (03:12.823)
But wouldn’t the Hatch Act come into play here? I’m not sure. The Hatch Act?
Chris Quinn (03:16.053)
The what?
I don’t know. How so?
Lisa (03:21.713)
I mean, I don’t know, it could be just on the federal level. I’m not schooled on the Hatch Act, but I know there are certain things you can’t do, you know, 90 days before an election that might upset the results.
Chris Quinn (03:32.389)
I don’t know. If Donald Trump murdered somebody tomorrow, mean, they surely could arrest him for that. This is, they’re alleging that he committed a crime and that there should be some answering for that.
Laura (03:47.564)
What we covered one of the filings last week and it was a lot of news articles basically it was the wine op ed he wrote for the New York Times it was other pieces that were reporting and the judges are saying that this affidavit should have included police reports or other materials that would articulate facts to justify. case and that the court is left with speculation and that’s not probable cause they said there’s no proof that there.
statements from Vance and Trump are false. That’s the thing. You can’t, it’s hard to prove a negative, right? You can’t say we have scoured every pet and there have been no eating of pets. I mean, you probably could, but that would be more difficult than saying there’s no proof that any pets were ever eaten in Springfield and that they can’t prove that the JD Vance’s and Trump’s statements caused the bomb threats and other.
hardships to Springfield. I think it’s pretty easy to draw a line there and I think you’re right that the judges are doing whatever they think is the least controversial here because they’re not just saying no, but it is punting.
Chris Quinn (04:55.193)
Yeah, but kicking it to the prosecutors where they go astray. If they would have said what you just said, look, you didn’t provide the evidence that’s necessary for us to make a determination. So we’re rejecting it. You can refile. Then the attorneys can go back and do their homework and put together all those documents. But turning it over to the prosecutor is where they’re just trying to duck the whole thing. You are listening to Today in Ohio.
Laura (05:07.64)
Mm-hmm.
Chris Quinn (05:19.967)
While Trump and Vance continue to vilify refugees and immigrants, Cuyahoga County has been operating a welcome center for them this year. The center is expanding to offer a new service to the newcomers. Laila, what is it? How much will it cost?
Leila (05:34.942)
The Welcome Center wants to help immigrants and refugees find jobs. so this week, the county’s board of control approved a two year, $241,000 contract with Cleveland State University. The goal here is to help employers better navigate the complexities of hiring foreign born workers who are legally in the U.S. Many Ukrainians, for example, have arrived in Cuyahoga County under what’s called humanitarian parole.
And this status lets them stay temporarily. Of course, the word parole is kind of a misnomer. They’re not paroled from the criminal justice system, but they need proper work authorization, which can be tricky for employers to figure out. David Merriman, who’s the head of the county’s Health and Human Services Department explained that employers often want to hire these skilled people, but they’re confused by the legal process.
And so that’s where CSU’s new county funded attorney comes in. They’ll help businesses understand the hiring requirements for these workers, not necessarily by providing legal advice to individuals, but by helping develop policies to make the hiring process easier. And I guess what those policies might look like remains to be seen. But Mayor Merriman emphasized that while the Welcome Center has been helping people with things like housing and public benefits, many are also asking for this help finding work.
Nationally, immigrants make up 19 % of the workforce. And with initiatives like this, the county is hoping to improve employment opportunities for new arrivals.
Chris Quinn (07:06.197)
Could there be any more stark a difference between the enlightenment of what’s going on in Cuyahoga County and the dark forces of the Trump campaign? Here we are doing everything we can to welcome refugees here, not just to help them get situated, now to help them find jobs, while the two candidates on the Republican ticket are doing everything they can to declassify them as human beings and kick them out of the country.
Leila (07:33.776)
Right, right. Well, I mean, there’s an in here in Cuyahoga County, there’s a recognition that this is not only helping people find stable employment, but it’s addressing potential labor shortages in various industries. Many of these immigrants come with professional skills and qualifications that could benefit local businesses, which in turn boosts the economy. It’s about leveraging the talents of newcomers to strengthen the community as a whole. And that that’s completely lost.
on people like Trump and Vance. They are just ignoring that in favor of whatever pleases their base.
Chris Quinn (08:11.733)
Well, and let’s remember Vance represents us and Cuyahoga County as a senator. So if this is a big belief of where we need to go in Cuyahoga County, in Franklin County and other urban counties, he’s supposed to be looking out for our interests and he’s doing the exact opposite. Something to remember as we discuss our next story. You’re listening to Today in Ohio.
Leila (08:16.082)
Right.
Chris Quinn (08:34.549)
Public service time, Lisa. Today is the first day of early voting in Ohio where you cast your ballot for your presidential and Senate candidates and then you can ignore all the ads from here on in. We also have the all important issue one to end gerrymandering. So what do people need to know about how to vote early in person or by mail?
Lisa (08:38.963)
you
Lisa (08:50.771)
What do people need to know about how to…
Lisa (08:55.973)
Yeah, in-person early voting starts today, as you said, and it goes through November 3rd. The hours at the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections is 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. They do have weekend voting hours, but those will change on weekends as election day nears. If you’re voting in person, you do vote at your County Board of Elections office, in the county where you’re registered.
Cuyahoga County’s Board of Elections is at 2925 Euclid Avenue. Their drop box is in their parking lot. They have a really teeny parking lot. I was just there not too long ago. There are very few spaces and they’re only for handicap parking. There is parking available nearby at the Campus International K-8 School at East 30th and Chester.
And then one that’s one block north of the elections board. And then there’s a parking garage off Chester just east of that campus international building. As far as IDs, you have to have a photo ID. You can no longer use to be able to bring utility bills, social security statements, birth certificates, pay stubs, insurance cards, or bank statements. None of those will be accepted. You have to have a photo ID, either a driver’s license, an Ohio state ID, a U S passport or card.
military ID, a Veterans Affairs ID, or Ohio National Guard ID. If you do not have any of these, you can cast a provisional ballot, but you have to produce a valid ID at the elections office within four days after election day. I have, we can go ahead.
Chris Quinn (10:22.771)
This is a reason. There is a reason for people to not wait for Election Day because if they don’t have the right photo ID and they show up on Election Day, they’ll be voting provisionally. But if they go down to vote early and there’s any kind of problem, they still have a chance to go home, get whatever they need and come back. So it might be worth it if people have any question about their documentation to go ahead, drive down there in the early voting period.
Lisa (10:39.943)
Mm-hmm.
Chris Quinn (10:51.369)
to make sure, because once you vote provisionally, that becomes a whole nightmare. A lot of those get ultimately rejected. You don’t know your vote will count and you want your vote to count.
Lisa (10:56.261)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa (11:01.903)
And if you’re voting absentee, like my mother and many others, you should have received a ballot in a ballot request in the mail from the Secretary of State’s office. I believe he sent it to all Ohioans. You must submit your paper request for a ballot. You can find that online or at your county board of elections. The deadline to request an absentee ballot is October 24th. If you haven’t received your ballot and you’ve asked for one, contact your local elections office.
Chris Quinn (11:29.759)
There is something to be said for getting your vote in early and then just tuning out all of the ugly commercials that are going to be flying for the next four weeks. It is horrible. I heard from a huge number of people on my text account yesterday about how disgusted they are with the lies and the horribleness of the ads. You are listening to Today in Ohio. After United Airlines closed its hub in Cleveland more than a decade ago, Spirit Airlines was the first to fill the void.
Lisa (11:34.291)
Hahaha
Chris Quinn (11:58.951)
Over the years though, it has been overtaken by Frontier. Today we have two airlines in Cleveland going in opposite directions. Laura, what’s the latest bad news from Spirit? While Frontier just announced another Cleveland route expansion.
Laura (12:14.508)
I know, I feel like pretty soon the only way to fly out of Cleveland is going to be on Frontier because they are the ones, at least if you want to fly directly anywhere, because they are offering nonstop flights to a lot of places that Cleveland leisure travelers want to go, where places where Spirit is actually suspending this nonstop service to Orlando. That’s as the carrier talks about filing for bankruptcy. They say this is a suspension. They’re not canceling it for good.
starting at November 5th, it’s scheduled to return January 9th. I would not bet on this. If you’re trying to go to Orlando in January, February, I probably wouldn’t bet on going on Spirit. And we just lost these, well, we’re losing the Southwest flight to Atlanta, which I was totally disappointed in. So again, it feels like Frontier’s gonna be it for your choices. They are launching a new service to Palm Beach International Airport in December.
It’s only going to run weekly though, only on Saturdays. So if you’re not going for an entire week to Palm Beach, I don’t know why you’d want to fly this, but the rates do start at $59 on December 21st. They used to fly that. It was discontinued a couple years ago. But Spirit still does fly to Florida. I believe they fly to Fort Lauderdale and that’s about it. That’s their one destination from Cleveland right now.
Chris Quinn (13:35.133)
I can’t imagine there’s a more guaranteed route to have passengers than Cleveland to Orlando because everybody from Orlando goes for Disney World and Universal and all the stuff they have there. So for them to cancel that one, which I can’t imagine is not profitable, is a very bad sign. The bankruptcy does seem like it’s likely when you start getting out of the Orlando business. And maybe Frontier’s just outpricing them.
Laura (13:41.208)
memories.
Chris Quinn (14:01.733)
on that and so they’re the ones carrying everybody to Orlando but that’s a strong statement to cancel that route.
Laura (14:09.324)
It’s funny because they, know, Susan Glaser wrote the story. It was one of the original carriers or destinations when it entered the Cleveland market in 2015. I flew it to Orlando. That’s the only time I’ve ever flown Spirit when my kids were really little. We flew Spirit and I didn’t have any problems really with it. I remember waiting. There was a delay and you know, with, I think we had a three year old and a one year old in the airport. That’s not your favorite thing to be on a delay, but they’d never been on a plane before. So they were enthralled watching it. But
I mean, we never like to see us lose options from Cleveland because it doesn’t feel like we have a lot of direct access as it.
Chris Quinn (14:48.243)
We need a new airport. It’s as simple as that. We should go with our regional funding plan. You’re listening to Today in Ohio. A former star quarterback at Ohio State University has watched the current players prosper under new rules, allowing them to be paid for the use of their names and their images. Now that quarterback is suing Ohio State. Leila, what’s his claim? What does he want?
Leila (15:12.478)
Well, we’re talking about former Ohio State quarterback Terrell Pryor, and he’s suing the NCAA, Ohio State, the Big Ten, and sports marketing company Learfield over the use of his name, image, and likeness during his time as a college athlete. And the lawsuit was filed Friday, claims that these organizations made and continue to make huge profits off of Pryor and his teammates without any compensation for the players.
The suit points out that the NCAA and conferences still air old games featuring Pryor and others, and they generate revenue through TV and YouTube without sharing any of that money with the athletes who played in those games. Pryor’s lawsuit is similar to one that was filed by former USC running back Reggie Bush. Both are challenging the way players’ name, image, and likeness rights were handled before recent changes in college sports rules. Pryor, you know, at Ohio State,
His time there ended in controversy after he and four teammates were suspended for selling memorabilia and receiving free tattoos. But despite that, Prior had a really impressive career. He threw over 6,000 yards and ran for more than 2,000 yards during his time in Columbus. This lawsuit could really open the door for other former athletes to seek compensation for how their name, image, and likeness were used during their college careers.
Chris Quinn (16:31.061)
The question is how far back can you go? He’s making it current by saying, they’re still running recordings of me today and I should get compensated for that. Okay, there’s probably a good debate there, but he left there, what, almost 15 years ago, 14 years ago. I would think there’s a statute of limitations on how far back you can go. Otherwise, what are we gonna go back to, the 50s, the 60s? I mean, it’s…
Leila (16:39.42)
Right, right.
Leila (16:43.645)
Yeah.
Chris Quinn (16:55.719)
It’s there’s a question here. This is a very quickly evolving landscape. I mean, think about it. Five years ago, there’s no way college players were going to get paid. Now they could be salaried by the time this is over. So the old players are looking at it, thinking, I deserve my piece. It’s a it’s a big question. I’ll be fascinated to see how this lawsuit goes. And maybe the answer is replaying those old games that they should get some kind of.
residual payment the way musicians get it every time one of their songs are played in the radio.
Leila (17:27.572)
I mean, I’m fascinated by this debate because on one hand, it’s not just about lost opportunities during their college years. It’s about the millions that are still being made off of his performances long after he left the field. But on the other hand, the rules at the time of his playing career were pretty clear and athletes knew that they couldn’t profit from their name, image or likeness while in college prior and his teammates agreed to play under those conditions. So retroactively applying today’s
rules I feel could really set a difficult precedent. Like you said, it might open the door for countless lawsuits from past athletes. And that’s so complicating. also, one could argue that Pryor already benefited from his time at Ohio State. He gained national exposure and access to all these professional opportunities, including his NFL career. mean, so
Lisa (18:06.611)
But also, one could argue that Friar already benefited from his time at Ohio State being national exposure. I mean, access to his professional opportunities, including his health career here. mean, so what about the reruns of games that Friar played? I where did those fall? That’s really where I think the question lies. I mean, there, I do think he has a very strong point. But I just don’t think that you can go back in the time when the rules were clearly different.
Leila (18:18.694)
Now, what about the reruns of games that Pryor played? mean, where do those fall? That’s really where I think the question lies. mean, there I do think he has a very strong claim, but I just don’t think that you can go back into time when the rules were clearly different at the time when he played.
Chris Quinn (18:31.006)
Well,
Lisa (18:36.083)
Thank
Chris Quinn (18:36.117)
And but I don’t know that he has a strong claim if there there were rules that were in place that said Ohio State has sole rights to the recordings of the games. It’s a fascinating lawsuit. It’ll be interesting to how it’s played out. I imagine Ohio State is going to fight this to the bitter end. They probably won’t settle it because then they’re going to get deluged by similar lawsuits.
Leila (18:48.786)
Yeah.
Chris Quinn (18:59.551)
Good case, we’ll be following it as it proceeds through the courts and I think you’ll see a lot of other players filing similar ones. You’re listening to Today in Ohio. Our friend Judge Tim McGinty clued us in on this one. Lisa, why was the Navy destroyer called the Nantucket in the Cleveland Harbor on Monday?
Lisa (19:18.597)
Yeah, the USS Nantucket is a brand new littoral combat ship. It arrived in Cleveland Harbor yesterday and it’ll be here until Friday. They’re basically taking on fuel and supplies and dumping their wastewater while they’re here. It was built in Marionette, Wisconsin. It’s on its way to be commissioned at the Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston and then on to Jacksonville, Florida, where it’s going to be its home port there.
So a littoral combat ship, it kind of reminds me of the old PT boats of World War II. They’re small, they’re designed to operate near shore, also in the ocean, they have a low draft so they can work in shallow water. And many of them are used right now to fight drug smugglers. The first one was commissioned in 2008. So this is a fairly new class of ships. It’s the fifth of the same class to stop in Cleveland on the way to their home ports. They like to stop here before leaving the Great Lakes because…
Our port is large enough for their needs, you know, to do what they need to do. Unfortunately, there are no public tours on the Nantucket, but the USS Cleveland, another littoral combat ship, is coming next year and they’re planning a major event around that.
Chris Quinn (20:25.757)
It’s so cool when these ships come into our harbor. just gives you a different view. And Tim McGinty’s up in the courthouse and he looks out the window, sees it there, snapped a couple of pictures. He gave us the rights to use those pictures, which we did and clued us into the story, which Pete Krause put together. Check it out. It’s on cleveland.com. You’re listening to Today in Ohio.
After he was fired as the Metro Health CEO based on allegations that he gave himself a couple of million dollars in bonuses to which he was not entitled, Akram Butro sued the hospital. He alleged they conducted business in violation of Ohio’s Open Meetings Act. Laura, why did a judge throw out that lawsuit this week?
Laura (21:09.058)
I don’t exactly know because common pleas Judge Jennifer O’Donnell made this ruling without any explanation. And that is the only pending case Boutros had against the board that stemmed from that dismissal in November of 2022. Like you said, the board accused him of paying himself nearly $2 million in unauthorized bonuses. And then he went back and filed lawsuits against them. He had led the hospital system for nearly 10 years and all sorts of changes.
really viewed as positives under his tenure, including the hospital in a park concept and they say the Glick Tower. But he accused the hospital system of flouting the Open Meetings Act and in a separate lawsuit, the breach of contract defamation and wrongful termination. Now that second lawsuit ended up dismissed in December. He cited a serious health issue. His lawyer says they’re going to refile that in the coming weeks. But that violation of the Open Meetings Act
comes from a state law that requires public officials to discuss and take official action only in open meetings unless the subject matter is specifically exempt from law. This is something that reporters know a lot about because we go to meetings, we cover them, and then they go into executive session if they’re going to talk about personnel or buying real estate or something that is allowed as secretive. And so the suit claims the board failed in the way it went into those executive sessions. And he really didn’t want to be replaced
at the time. And then with Erica Steed, that was late 2022. She was dismissed in the last August. And so they haven’t had a real easy run of CEOs lately at Metro.
Chris Quinn (22:46.771)
you say he didn’t want to be dismissed. He had quit. He was going to be gone in a couple of months anyway. I always thought this lawsuit was bogus. I didn’t understand where he was coming from. We looked at all these records and it seemed like they had done things on the up and up. But I’m troubled by the judge not releasing reasons. I mean, if he wants to appeal this decision, he has a right to do that, but not having the explanation for why she dismissed it, I guess they’ll have to rely
on Metro Health’s arguments. I don’t see this being appealed. I think he’s much more likely to refile the suit that he did drop. I mean, it was dismissed at his request because he was so sick. And they’re saying they’re going to refile that. And I expect that that’ll probably go deeper into the system. Interesting that it took this long for this decision to be made because I don’t think there’s been a whole lot to consider on it.
Laura (23:25.57)
Mm-hmm.
Laura (23:43.776)
Right, it’s not like this was a trial. don’t know the thinking of the judge. We don’t have a whole lot of arguments. We just… Yeah, this is… It’s done.
Chris Quinn (23:53.619)
We still don’t have the final resolution on the investigation and audit of what he did. That’s still pending. I don’t even think the prosecutor’s office has the investigation file yet. It’s taken forever to resolve that case.
Laura (24:08.782)
Yeah, this was Thanksgiving-ish of 2022, so we’re almost on two years.
Chris Quinn (24:14.185)
You’re listening to Today in Ohio. We talked last week about pneumonia’s odd circulation of late in the warmer months, which is filling intensive care units with patients. What can we expect in the months ahead with the flu, RSV and other viruses that spread most commonly in winter? And Lilo, this is the of person with you, you’re dealing with these things right now.
Leila (24:34.064)
Yes, I’ve had no end to sick kids staying home from school the last few weeks, but here in Cuyahoga County, we’ve already seen 13 flu-related deaths this season, with nationwide numbers also climbing. The CDC director, Dr. Mandy Cohen, recently said that flu seasons in the southern hemisphere can actually provide insights into what we might expect here. And this year, they experienced
an average season without significant new strains of the flu emerging. But this winter, families in Cleveland are better equipped to tackle seasonal viruses thanks to an updated arsenal of health tools. Among those are the 24, 25 COVID-19 vaccine, a revamped flu vaccine, a new at-home test that can detect both flu and COVID, and the return of those free rapid COVID tests from the government.
Dr. Cohen stressed that while these resources are available, their effectiveness really hinges on people actually using them. She emphasized that vaccination is key as we approach the winter virus season. Cohen explained that vaccines can cut the risk of hospitalization in half, which is really critical since an average winter virus season can still lead to about 100,000 hospitalizations. She highlighted the importance of healthcare providers recommending vaccinations.
because a lot of people rely on their doctors and pharmacists for that kind of guidance. Notably, last year, the primary reason that people didn’t get vaccinated against COVID was that they hadn’t received that recommendation from their healthcare providers. Everyone age six months and older is encouraged to get the updated COVID vaccine. COVID is continuing to pose risks, particularly for those in high-risk groups. And the CDC also notes that
new combination tests for flu and COVID vaccine are available at your retailers in your community, and that makes it easier to diagnose these illnesses. In addition to the vaccines and the tests, the CDC is working to make sure that COVID shots are also available, especially for adults without insurance. And while vaccination rates have been pretty low among kids, health experts are hopeful that all these new initiatives will help boost numbers and keep us safe during the winter months.
Chris Quinn (26:58.329)
The 12 flu deaths when you add it to the pneumonia cases we talked about last week are disturbing. And you do wonder what’s going on. One of the theories that was advanced is that people have been weakened after they have COVID. Nobody can prove that yet. I don’t know if there are studies underway. But it is is bothersome to the point where I hope people do get vaccinated because this could be ugly if it’s spreading already.
Leila (27:03.485)
Yeah.
Leila (27:23.782)
Yeah. Well, you know, I do recall that early in the COVID pandemic, we did see a lot of deaths that were caused by that secondary flu infection because people were so immunocompromised having had COVID that, you know, they ended up dying of flu. That was pretty common in hospitals. So I can see how these things just sort of compound as the illness season carries on.
I think it could be devastating. It does feel like we’re really early though, doesn’t it, to be seeing all of these.
Chris Quinn (27:56.957)
Yeah, yeah. It was way too early for me to get pneumonia. I’ll say that you’re listening to today in Ohio. We mentioned that today is the first day of early voting. Lisa, what are the more interesting local tax issues on the ballot?
Leila (28:02.203)
Ugh, yeah.
Lisa (28:11.251)
Well, in Cleveland, the Cleveland Metropolitan School District has two tax levies on the ballot, a $295 million bond issue for building construction and renovation, and also a 10-year levy that would generate about $52 million a year.
it would cost the median Cleveland homeowner about $240 a year in, property taxes. Issue 55 will extend the county cigarette tax 10 years for the Cuyahoga Cart Arts and Culture to fund them. It will replace a 1.5 cent excise tax with a 3.5 cent excise tax. That means cigarettes will go, the excise tax will go from 30 cents to 70 cents a pack.
In Mayfield, Mayfield schools have an additional five mil tax on the ballot for current expenses, estimated to generate about $7.7 million a year, costing $175 per hundred thousand dollar home value. Richmond Heights schools, two tax increases on the ballot there, a continuing annual 1.25 % income tax for current expenses. And then this is on district income.
from individuals in estates don’t quite understand that. Also a $15.4 million bond issue for renovation and expansion of Richmond schools that will cost about $113 per 100,000 valuation. Strongsville schools, they have a 4.9 mil continuing additional tax. It would generate about $9.3 million a year, about $172 per $100,000 home valuation.
Chris Quinn (29:51.645)
Lots of lots of things for people to pay attention to outside of the big races. We’ve talked to the president, Senate, issue one, but those down ballot things cost people money. They should be given it a good look. You’re listening to Today in Ohio. That’s it for the Tuesday episode. Thanks, Lisa. Thanks, Leila. Thanks, Laura. Thank you for listening. We’ll be back Wednesday. And I think Courtney Astolfi will be back. Leila, thanks for being here the last two Wednesdays.
