CINCINNATI —

A dramatic spike in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations.

Ohio is hitting record levels in both categories as experts see a worrying trend of more children hospitalized.

Now, there's a renewed push for vaccinations in kids and masks in schools.

Cincinnati Children's staff stepped outside its walls to help vaccinate kids at the Museum Center.

"We don't want them to pass this virus on to their younger siblings perhaps," said Cincinnati Children's clinical director for advanced practice providers, Lisa Crosby.

Anyone 5 years or older can get the COVID-19 vaccine.

Experts said this is a critically important time as the omicron variant is causing a surge in cases of all ages.

"We're seeing more positive COVID, not necessarily admissions, but positive testing. Our testing numbers have gone sky high over the past week and a half as far as how many people we're testing and how many are positive," Crosby said.

Cincinnati's future mayor, Aftab Pureval, made a stop to speak to families and encourage vaccination.

He said kids need to be in school and the safest way to do that is shots in arms.

"It's so critically important for our kids to be protected. Across the country, 26,000 kids have been so sick they've had to be hospitalized. Here in our community, hundreds of kids have been hospitalized due to COVID," Pureval said.

Kelley Davis said that jump in numbers is fueling her change of heart.

"I was kinda against it, but now that the cases are just running rampant — just everywhere, so now I'm convinced. I've been vaccinated and boosted," Davis said.

Her 8-year-old daughter walked away with a first dose and a free ticket to the museum.

"It really didn't hurt and I really didn't feel it," said Kenneesiah Spears.

Some were first-timers and others were ready for their booster, like Margot Hisle's son, Holland.

"He goes to a public school that's a really large public school and numbers are on the rise. He's a senior this year. I just want him to be safe. We have a new baby in the house. I just want to be extra cautious," Hisle said.

After announcing those record-high COVID-19 numbers, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine sent out a statewide call for masks in schools.

He's joined by health experts across the state who wrote a letter to all school districts.

Tracey Carson with Mason City Schools said the district will continue to watch closely local health data, but for now, the district is sticking with a mask recommendation.

"We've had an interesting way of having masks required in our elementaries and strongly recommended at our secondary level. What we found is we did not see a difference in cases of COVID-19. So we feel really good going in," Carson said.

CINCINNATI — After a 16-month closure due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Cincinnati Museum Center announced Saturday it plans to reopen the Children's Museum July 1.

Museum officials said recent consultation with health care professionals and new guidance from the CDC on masking and social distancing has paved the way for a safe reopening.

“We’ve been working closely with healthcare professionals and following CDC guidelines over the past several months to determine when we can responsibly reopen our Children’s Museum in a safe way that still delivers a premier learning-through-play experience,” said Museum Center president and CEO Elizabeth Pierce in a news release.

Guest capacity will be limited in the Children’s Museum to continue to allow social distancing, and the museum is implementing the same strict cleaning protocols it has been following in its other museums. Masks will be required in the museum to protect those who are not vaccinated, including children not yet eligible and those with underlying health conditions.

Updates on ticketing, member benefits and availability will be announced in the coming weeks.

“We know we’re not the only ones who will have this day circled on our calendars,” Pierce said. “Seeing kids climb through The Woods, splash through Waterworks and have those transformative moments of joy and epiphany are some of our most fulfilling moments as museum professionals.”

Along with the Children’s Museum, CMC anticipates reopening its STEM-in-action Science Interactives Gallery, presented by Procter & Gamble, this summer. The updated Ice Age Gallery, closed since the start of Union Terminal’s restoration in July 2016, will also reopen on July 1.