COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio officials are considering closing bars and restaurants to try to slow the spread of the new coronavirus, Gov. Mike DeWine said in a nationally televised interview Sunday morning.

“We’re certainly looking at that,” DeWine, a Republican, said in an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

UPDATE: All Ohio bars, restaurants to close 9 p.m. Sunday due to coronavirus - carryout still allowed

https://www.cleveland.com/healthfit/2020/03/all-bars-restaurants-to-close-9-pm-sunday-due-to-coronavirus-carryout-still-allowed-ohio-gov-mike-dewines-sunday-briefing.html

He recounted how his administration over the past week has limited public gatherings, closed K-12 schools, and restricted access to nursing homes and prisons to try to slow the spread of COVID-19 so it does not overwhelm the state’s medical system. The more severe restrictions were imposed after a Stark County man tested positive for the disease without known contact with someone else who had it, the state’s first known case of community spread.

“We’re taking tough steps … Every day counts so much and you just, you cannot wait. You’ve got to move very, very quickly,” DeWine said. “These are tough decisions. We’re inconveniencing people. It’s making peoples’ lives change. But we’ve got to save lives. Everything we’re doing is to save lives.”

And in an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union," DeWine said the state’s school closure could be extended for the rest of the school year. On Thursday, DeWine ordered that schools close for three weeks starting on Monday, when schools go on spring break.

“Look, the projections, and again this is all projections, I’m just going from what medical experts are telling us. This may not peak until the latter part of April or May,” DeWine said. “We’ve informed the superintendents that while we’ve closed schools for three weeks, the odds are this is going to go a lot longer. And it would not surprise me at all if schools did not open again this year.”

The odds are "this is going to go on a lot longer and it would not surprise me at all if schools did not open again this year,” Ohio @GovMikeDeWine says about the long-term impact of the coronavirus. #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/i0luWcQVzX — State of the Union (@CNNSotu) March 15, 2020

On Twitter, Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder, a Republican, urged DeWine to consider measures short of closing restaurants and bars, such as reducing maximum occupancy to limit crowding.

In lieu of closing restaurants/ taverns I encourage the Governor to consider reducing Maximum Occupancy by a certain percentage across the board. This keeps these businesses open, controls the crowd and may even help spread business around in a community. — Speaker Larry Householder (@HouseholderOH) March 15, 2020

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, another Republican who is the state’s legal representative, responded on Twitter that Householder’s suggestion was “solid counsel.”

With the Sunday shows as the latest example, DeWine has emerged as a major national voice for an aggressive response to coronavirus, particularly as other Republicans, including President Donald Trump, initially downplayed the seriousness of the outbreak and conveyed skepticism of expansive measures that would disrupt the economy. DeWine faced pushback when on March 5, he banned the public from attending the Arnold Classic, a large weightlifting competition and expo in Columbus. The following week, sports leagues including the NBA and the NHL announced they were postponing their seasons.

The White House since has imposed a “sea change” in its response, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Sunday in a separate “Meet the Press” interview.

He said Americans should expect more closures.

“I think Americans should be prepared that they’re going to have to hunker down significantly more than we as a country are doing,” he said.

Since the state’s first three cases were reported in Cuyahoga Count last Monday, Ohio has seen a steady increase in confirmed cases as state testing has ramped up. Ohio has 26 confirmed coronavirus cases, two in Belmont, four in Butler, 11 in Cuyahoga, one in Franklin, one in Lorain, three in Stark, two in Summit and two in Trumbull, DeWine administration officials said on Saturday.

At 3 p.m., DeWine and Ohio Health Department Director Amy Acton are expected to hold a media availability in Columbus. UPDATE: This has been delayed until 3:30 p.m.

See other recent Ohio political news:

26 confirmed Ohio coronavirus cases: Gov. DeWine’s Saturday briefing

Ohioans should postpone many elective surgeries because of the coronavirus, Gov. Mike DeWine recommends

Cuyahoga County short 500 poll workers, part of a larger statewide shortage due to coronavirus

Here’s what Ohio college students need to know about voting in the March 17 primary

Ohio students will be out of school for at least 3 weeks. Will they be exempt from testing, hour requirements?