The Delaware County Board of Commissioners on Monday passed a resolution expressing its concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic and urging the State of Ohio to carefully consider its response to the escalating health crisis.

“While the shutdowns in the spring were an emergency measure to immediately protect the public health, safety, and welfare…,” the commissioners wrote in their resolution, “…the prior shutdowns had a devastating impact on small retail businesses, restaurants, service providers, and schools, many of which have been unable to recover.”

Commissioners Jeff Benton, Barb Lewis and Gary Merrell went on to note that:

• Local small businesses have been financially devastated by the impact of the first shutdown and the continuing business restrictions.

• Children have not received the education and social interaction they need.

• There was a rise in spousal and child abuse, as well as a rise in suicides and drug overdoses.

• There has been a failure to treat other illnesses because of the shutdown, such as cancer and heart issues.

The resolution further decries the use of “sweeping orders for additional shutdowns” and urges the State of Ohio to engage in “targeted enforcement of the existing requirements, punishing the bad actors, not the vast majority working in good faith to follow the existing requirements.”

Finally, the resolution encourages Delaware County residents “to follow all current restrictions and guidance to mitigate the COVID-19 public health emergency, including proper hygiene, close self-monitoring, wearing of facial coverings, and social distancing, not as a matter of legal obligation, but as an expression of solidarity with our community’s health care workers and most vulnerable citizens.”