Here are your morning headlines for Friday, September 17:
- Rep. Gonzalez, who voted to impeach Trump, won't run again
- Ohio to receive 855 Afghan refugees
- COVID surge has hospitals overwhelmed
- Medina, Plain Local schools among top 10 for COVID cases
- Ohio finalizes $800M opioid settlement
- Hudson school members vow to stay
Rep. Gonzalez, who voted to impeach Trump, won't run again
(AP) -- One of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump for his role in inciting the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol will not seek reelection next year. Congressman Anthony Gonzalez of Rocky River cited his two young children for his decision and noted “the chaotic political environment that currently infects our country.” The 36-year-old former NFL player would have faced Max Miller, a former Trump White House aide with the former president's endorsement, in next year's primary. The Ohio GOP censured Gonzalez in May for his impeachment vote.
Ohio to receive 855 Afghan refugees
(AP) — Gov. Mike DeWine says more than 850 Afghan refugees will be arriving in Ohio and placed within eight local resettlement agencies as part of the first group of nearly 37,000 arrivals across the country. The evacuees will be arriving through the U.S. Department of State’s Afghan Placement and Assistance Program. International Institute of Akron is receiving 150 evacuees, and US Together in Cleveland is receiving 85. Catholic Charities Migration and Refugee Services and U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, both based in Cleveland, are each receiving 100.
COVID surge has hospitals overwhelmed
(WKSU) -- The COVID surge continues to gain strength in Ohio, with more than 8,300 new cases and 355 hospitalizations reported on Thursday. The state’s top doctor says hospitals are overwhelmed, and some are canceling elective procedures or sending patients elsewhere. Bruce Vanderhoff said the Ohio Hospital Association is reporting 1 in 6 hospitalized patients in the state has COVID, and about 1 in 4 in the ICU is battling the virus.
Medina, Plain Local schools among top 10 for COVID cases
(Cleveland.com) -- Two Northeast Ohio school districts are among the top 10 in COVID cases this past week. Cleveland.com reports Medina and Stark County's Plain Local each had more than 80 student and staff cases. Cincinnati Public Schools reported the highest number of new infections with nearly 200.
Ohio finalizes $800M opioid settlement
(WKSU) -- Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost says the state has finalized its more than $800 million settlement with drugmaker Johnson & Johnson and the nation’s three largest opioid distributors. Ohio’s share is part of the $21 billion deal to settle lawsuits filed by thousands of local governments for contributing to the opioid crisis. More than half of Ohio’s settlement money will go to addiction treatment programs. Another 30% will go to local governments; the remaining 15% will go to the state. Yost says Ohio cities and counties will begin receiving payments as early as November, and that the entire settlement will be paid out over 18 years.
Hudson school members vow to stay
(Beacon Journal, Cleveland.com) -- The head of the Hudson school board says he and his colleagues have no intention of stepping down despite threats from the city’s mayor. The Beacon Journal reports that Board President David Zuro said members will continue in their jobs despite threats of a lawsuit over questionable high school content. At issue are writing prompts in a college credit plus writing class that some parents found offensive. Zuro pointed out the Ohio Department of Education clearly states that high school students taking college courses may encounter material with adult themes. A Hiram College spokesperson tells Cleveland.com that at no time were any students assigned the questionable prompts. Nevertheless, the district removed the book, "642 Things To Write About," and has promised an investigation.
