LANCASTER - Local safety forces leaders are leaving it to their employees discretion to receive the COVID-19 vaccination, while still enforcing state and local safety protocols.
Doses of the vaccine were available to firefighters in December of 2020, and while initially promised to law enforcement officers around the same time, doses for police weren t available in Ohio until March of this year.
And while the vaccine isn t compulsory, local department leaders feel their employees will follow proper guidelines when dealing with the public.
Vaccinations have been made available to much of the general public at this point.
Sheriff s office
Fairfield County Sheriff Alex Lape said the sheriff s office chose to lead by example, getting the vaccine when it was available.
LANCASTER - Although the format was different this year, the message was clear in the state of the city address: Lancaster is improving.
The annual event, hosted by the Lancaster Fairfield Chamber of Commerce, was made as a video this year, posted online.
Chamber President Travis Markwood interviewed city department heads while taking quick tours of department facilities.
Lancaster Mayor David Scheffler discussed a number of topics, including employment, housing and the city s latest income tax increase. I can say, (the city) is improving. A big consideration, for all of us, is the COVID-19 pandemic. But with cases declining and vaccine distribution rolling out, we re looking for a better year this year than we had last year, he said. Probably the most consequential development in my term of mayor, three years in and three years to go, is passing the income tax increase last November.