State officials say they will delay submitting a plan to the federal government to overhaul the Medicaid eligibility process for about 700,000 Ohioans who receive the tax-funded health services.

The Dayton area added 48 hundred jobs during the past year. That’s from a report released this week by a national business journal called On Numbers. As WYSO’s Emily McCord explains, it’s the second year in a row of job growth.

Montgomery County is recommending nine area projects for funding, totaling nearly $1.5 million. The Ohio Economic Development Government Equity Advisory Committee, or EDGE, is spearheading the request.

One proposed project is a $100,000  investment to create corporate headquarters for the medical manufacturing group, Midmark.  The money would be used to renovate an existing facility at Tech Town. According to a press release from the county, the project would bring 57 jobs to the area.

Bob Evans Farms Inc. says it will close two food production plants in Ohio next year and beef up its production at a Texas facility.

 The Ohio-based restaurant and food company plans to shut down plants in Springfield and Bidwell in southern Ohio next summer as it focuses on convenience foods, packaged side dishes and other higher-growth opportunities.

The move will mean over 50 jobs lost in Springfield and will affect about 110 employees overall. The company says it will try to place some of them in other jobs with Bob Evans.

The unemployment rate in Ohio has dropped for the eighth straight month despite the non-farm payrolls decreasing by 9,500.