Ohio governor says it’s ‘absolutely’ possible that schools stay closed for rest of year

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) said Sunday that schools may remain closed through the end of the year as the coronavirus outbreak continues to spread. 

Ohio is among a handful of states that announced it would be closing schools for a few weeks. 

CNN’s “State of the Union” host Brianna Keilar asked DeWine if he anticipates the state may close schools for the rest of the year. 

{mosads}”Absolutely,” DeWine responded. 

“Going by what medical experts are telling us, [the outbreak] may not peak until the latter part of April or May,” he added. “We’ve informed superintendents while we’ve closed schools for three weeks, odds are we will go on a lot longer.” 

DeWine said it will “not surprise” him if schools don’t open again this year. 

He noted closing schools isn’t the only measure Ohio needs to take in order to mitigate the spread of the virus. 

“I have learned about talking to the experts, it’s not just one thing, [we] have to do a lot of different things and do them early,” DeWine said. “And that’s what we’re trying to do in Ohio.”