‘Patently Absurd:’ Governor DeWine’s Office Says of Ohio State Rep. Becker’s 10 Criminal Charges Against the Republican Governor

September 29, 2020 Jack Windsor

During a Tuesday COVID press conference Ohio Republican Governor Mike DeWine was asked by WMFD-TV:

Governor, Five Texas Republicans sued Texas Republican Governor Abbott over a $295 million contact tracing deal signed during the early months of Coronavirus pandemic. Legislators say the Governor skirted separation of powers , agreeing to a contract without following state statutes.

As you know, I’ve been waiting for months now for information on our contract with the company assisting Ohio with contact tracing – Partners in Health. I have to assume that is a multimillion dollar contract and our audience is interested in understanding the length and value of the deal.

How much have we paid Partners in Health, how much are we obligated to pay them and how long is the contract?”

Governor DeWine answered:

I don’t know the answer…but we certainly can get that answer. I don’t see any reason why we can’t get that answer next – on Thursday.  I would point out Partners in Health – while you’ve kind of highlighted them with some questions – and I talked about them several times because they have done this worldwide, this type of activity.

But, the tracing relies really on our local health departments – they’re the ones that are doing most of the hiring.  We have come in and hired tracers so that we can – if a county is overrun, if something happens – so that we can put tracers in there. So we hire, they hire, Partners in Health have played some role as far as advising because we respect the work they do in that particular area. But we will get you that information.

A record request was made to the Ohio Department of Health on April 26 regarding the state’s agreement with Partners in Health (PIH).

On May 21 the reporter from WMFD-TV asked Governor DeWine about the relationship with Partners in Health, particularly if it made sense given the organization’s penchant for altering the fundamentals of capitalism, citing it as a source of structural violence resulting in many societal ills.............To Read More.....