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Ohio Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Troy, joins Cincinnati Edition to talk about the $2.2 trillion relief package to combat the spread of coronavirus and to help the economy, which was signed into law by President Trump last week.

Cincinnati Edition speaks with State Representative Brigid Kelly (D-Cincinnati) about the details of a coronavirus relief bill that extends unemployment benefits, changes mandatory state testing for schools, limits EdChoice and extends the deadlines for filing taxes and absentee ballots.

Cincinnati Edition speaks with Julie Sellers, president of the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers, about many of the new educational provisions inside Ohio's COVID-19 relief bill.

Meals on Wheels of Southwest OH & Northern KY, formerly known as Wesley Community Services, is testing a phone outreach effort. Professional social workers will test a phone bank Saturday March 28. The agency is utilizing tech tools created by a company that would normally be doing phone banking and get-out-the-vote election efforts for campaigns.

The message from the Butler County General Health District and county leaders is simple: If you're over 65, "stay the heck at home."

Ohio's primary election was supposed to be held on March 17, St. Patrick's Day, but that came to a screeching halt the night of March 16, only hours before the polling places were to open, when Ohio Health Department Director Dr. Amy Acton ordered the polls to remain closed to protect voters from people carrying the COVID-19 virus.

Unemployment numbers released Thursday were staggering. "A record 3.28 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week as the coronavirus pandemic shut down much of the country," NPR reported.

In the midst of the coronavirus global pandemic, hand sanitizer has become harder to come by. Though medical professional still encourage frequent hand-washing with soap and water to help slow the spread of the deadly respiratory virus, hand sanitizer is a hot commodity, too.

Connie Smith-Monahan was suspected of possibly having COVID-19, and her work with a local school forced its closure before many local districts shut down entirely.

As the Cincinnati area joins the rest of the world in combatting the spread of COVID-19, the novel coronavirus, we are reminded that this is not the region's first brush with a global pandemic. The 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic hit Cincinnati hard, too. 

The Washington National Cathedral in the nation's capital made an unusual donation this week. It found more than 5,000 surgical masks tucked away in its crypt, stockpiled from a health scare around 2006.