Numbers released Thursday by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services show unemployment increasing at a slower rate in Muskingum County.

An additional 562 unemployment claims were filed last week, down from the 1,082 filed the previous week ending Saturday, April 10.

Lt. Governor Jon Husted said to expect decreased economic activity even as the state re-opens, while Governor Mike DeWine said earlier this week to expect a 20 to 30 percent cut in the state’s budget over the next 15 months as the state recovers from both the health and economic effects of the virus.

Husted referenced business owners and business who will be hesitant to rehire to full capacity with the looming economic uncertainty and hinted at a long road to recovery, which will require tapping into the state’s ‘Rainy Day Fund,’ officially referred to as the Budget Stabilization Fund which currently has almost $2.7 billion in reserves.

Ohio has paid out nearly $800 million in unemployment payments according to Husted earlier this week, though he didn’t disclose if that was with or without the federally funded $600 per week payment to those unemployed.

The state has reportedly begun back paying the $600 payment, with many claimants receiving multiple weeks of the federal money in lump sums this week.

Ohio is on track to run out of unemployment benefits around June at current withdrawal levels.