Today, members of the Ohio Senate Democratic Caucus sent a letter to Governor Mike DeWine to lay out the conditions they believe are necessary before his administration reopens Ohio’s economy. The senators want the governor to first and foremost protect the health and safety of Ohioans.

“It’s important that we get this absolutely right,” said Minority Leader Kenny Yuko (D-Richmond Heights). “If we reopen the economy without first increasing our testing capacity and without making sure that hospitals and businesses have enough PPE and cleaning supplies, we’ll be putting too many lives at risk. The economy is not going to recover if customers are afraid to go shopping and employees are afraid to go to work.”

In particular, Senate Democrats requested the following conditions be satisfied before the governor reopens the economy:

• Expanded testing capacity and enough data on the size, scope and spread of the virus in Ohio.


• Adequate supply of PPE and sanitation equipment.


• Required use of masks in public spaces.


• Precise guidelines for businesses that are proportional to the size of the business. The guidelines should also be well publicized so that both employees and consumers are familiar with them.


• Whistleblower protections for employees who report violations of these safety guidelines. Employees should be able to confidentially report such infractions without fear of retaliation.


• Accommodations for employees who have childcare needs, especially as long as our schools, day cares and presumably summer camps are closed.


• Continue to allow employees who can work from home to do so and in particular those who are at higher-risk or who take care of people who are at higher-risk.

“Our number one priority as a state must be to protect the health and safety of all Ohioans,” the senators wrote in the letter. “We oppose any plan that disproportionately prioritizes the economy over people’s lives.”