September 9th COVID-19 Update

Oregon State Legislature sent this bulletin at 09/09/2020 08:01 PM PDT
Michael Dembrow

September 9, 2020

I hope that you and your loved ones are doing well, staying healthy, and looking out for your neighbors and friends in these incredibly difficult times.

Today we again find ourselves with an improving COVID picture and deteriorating wildfire conditions here in Oregon.  You’ll find details on both fronts in the newsletter below.

Please take care, keep your heart open, and send best thoughts to those suffering from the shock of these difficult days.

And let me know if you have any questions about any of the information in this newsletter.

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TODAY’S CORONAVIRUS AND CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE UPDATE

  • Positive Cases: OHA reports that 106 additional Oregonians have tested positive for COVID. The cumulative total of those testing positive since the beginning of the pandemic is now 27,094.
  • Total Tests: The number of reported tests has increased by 2,568. The cumulative total is now 592,700.
  • Ratio: The percentage of positive test result over the last four days in Oregon is 4.1%.  The national ratio today is 5.3%.
  • Deaths: I’m sorry to report 8 additional deaths due to the coronavirus today. You can read more about the Oregonians we lost further down in the newsletter.  The total number of COVID deaths in Oregon is now at 494.
  • Hospitalized: OHA reports 9 new COVID hospitalizations today. The cumulative number of those who have been hospitalized with COVID is now 2,215.
  • Presumptive Cases: OHA is including “presumptive COVID-19 cases” in its daily reports, consistent with recently amended guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A presumptive case is someone who does not yet have a positive PCR test but is showing symptoms and has had close contact with a confirmed case. If they later test positive by PCR, those will be recategorized as confirmed cases. The number of new presumed positives today is 19. The total number of presumed positives is currently 1,377.
  • Other Hospital Information:
    • Patients Currently w COVID-19 Symptoms (who may or may not have received a positive test result yet): 147 (6 fewer than yesterday). Of those, 106 have already received a positive test back.
    • Available ICU Beds: 145 (45 fewer than yesterday)
    • Other Available Beds: 665 (170 fewer than yesterday).
    • ICU Patients w COVID-19 Symptoms: 31 (13 fewer than yesterday).
    • COVID-19 Patients Currently on Ventilators: 18 (3 fewer than yesterday).
    • Available Ventilators: 778 (same as yesterday).
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  • Today’s National Numbers:
  • Additional Brief Updates:
    • For information about fires, firefighting response, smoke levels and much more, you can find a variety of Wildfire-related Resources here.
    • In conjunction with the Oregon Secretary of State, OHA has prepared factsheets to help voters and election workers stay safe while voting and counting ballots, respectively:
  • COVID-19 Fact Sheet for Voters
  • COVID-19 Fact Sheet for Election Workers

Wildfire Update – Little Good News for Now

The conditions that I reported on yesterday have persisted in much of the state, and the results have been disastrous for Oregon.  In another press conference held this afternoon, the Governor and the Department of Forestry’s Fire Chief (Doug Grafe) called these days of conflagration “unprecedented” for our state.  Fire conditions are the worst they’ve been in at least three decades. While we may not ultimately be looking at record amounts of acres burned, we are potentially looking at an unprecedented amount of loss of homes and other structures, and, tragically, an unprecedented number of lives lost.

We learned that the towns of Detroit, Blue River, Vida, Phoenix, and Talent have been largely destroyed.

As I write this (immediately following a further briefing for legislators), we don’t yet have a clear picture of the potential loss of life.  We did just learn of the death of a boy and his grandmother who were caught in the Santiam Canyon Fire.  Tragically, they will be joined by others.

For now, firefighters, emergency personnel, and the Oregon National Guard have been focused on evacuations, and many lives have been saved as a result of truly heroic efforts by first responders.  We likely won’t have a full count of the dead for another day or two, after firefighters have been able to reenter the conflagration zone and start pushing back the fire.

The current firestorm trifecta (historically dry conditions, a cold front that creates powerful winds, and winds coming from the east) is now predicted to last in much of the state through tomorrow morning.  The hot, dry east winds will be replaced over the weekend by marine winds from the west, which should carry moisture and will definitely help going forward.  Unfortunately, that won’t be the case in the Medford area, where conditions in the Medford area will remain hot and dry.

Legislators did receive some requests to pass on.

  • First, everyone should find out what the fire status for their area is. (See the graphic at the bottom of the newsletter.)
  • Second, please don’t call 911 unless it’s a true emergency.
  • Third, if you’re in or close to an evacuation zone, be prepared. Sudden shifts in wind can put you suddenly at risk. Have a plan for where you’re going and what you will take. 
  • Fourth, stay close to home if you can. Certainly, stay far away from the evacuation areas.
  • Fifth, know that in many cases, reunification is going to be a challenge. The Red Cross will be coordinating reunifications, so it’s important that evacuees register with them.
  • Sixth, consider donating to the Red Cross or any of the other organizations that will be stepping up to provide food, support, and shelter to those affected by these tragic conditions.

Finally, I did learn today that one of my legislative colleagues and his wife had their home completely destroyed by the fire.  My heart goes out to them, along with gratitude that they were able to make their escape and are safe.

COVID and Smoke: Advice from the CDC and the OHA

The OHA just sent out the following advice for Oregonians affected by wildfire or smoke:

Know the difference between symptoms from smoke exposure and COVID-19:

  • Some symptoms, like dry cough, sore throat and difficulty breathing can be caused by both wildfire smoke exposure and COVID-19.
  • Learn about symptoms of COVID-19. Symptoms like fever or chills, muscle or body aches and diarrhea are not related to smoke exposure. If you have any of these symptoms, the CDC COVID-19 Self-Checkercan help you determine whether you need further assessment or testing for COVID-19. If you have questions after using the CDC COVID-19 Self-Checker,  contact a healthcare provider.
  • If you have severe symptoms, like difficulty breathing or chest pain, immediately call 911 or the nearest emergency facility.

If you will be staying with friends or family outside your household to evacuate:

  • Talk to the people you plan to stay with about how you can all best protect yourselves from COVID-19.
  • Consider if either of your households has someone who is at higher risk of developing severe illness from COVID-19, including older adults or people of any age who have underlying medical conditions. Make sure everyone knows what they can do to keep them safe from COVID-19.
  • Follow everyday preventive actions, including covering coughs and sneezes, washing your hands often, and avoiding touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands. Consider taking extra precautions for people living in close quarters.
  • Know what to do if someone in your family or in the household you are staying with becomes sick with COVID-19. Take steps to keep your pets safe.

Protect yourself and others while in a public shelter:

  • Practice physical distancing. Stay at least six feet from other people outside of your household.
  • Follow CDC COVID-19 preventive actions: Wash your hands often, cover coughs and sneezes and follow shelter policies for wearing masks. Avoid sharing food and drink with anyone if possible.
  • Follow disaster shelter policies and procedures designed to protect everyone in the shelter, especially those who are at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19, including older adults and people of any age who have serious underlying medical conditions.
  • Avoid touching high-touch surfaces, such as handrails, as much as possible. Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or use hand sanitizers with at least 60 percent alcohol immediately after you touch these surfaces.
  • Keep your living area in the shelter clean and disinfect frequently touched items.
  • If you feel sick when you arrive at the shelter or start to feel sick while sheltering, tell shelter staff immediately.

Weekly COVID Testing Report Released

OHA released its weekly testing report last night. It shows that for the week ending September 5, the positivity rate was 4.3%, the lowest it’s been since the end of June.  The cumulative rate for Oregonians since the beginning of the pandemic is 4.6% of people tested.

According to the testing report, just 26,855 people were tested last week.  However, this number will rise as test results are reported to OHA.  Tests are added to the week in which they were collected, but only once the results come in. 

Thus, last week’s report showed that just 26,550 tests were taken in the week ending August 29.  As you’ll see below, that number has now been adjusted up to 32,461.

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Even with these adjustments, our testing numbers remain low.  Again, this is due in part to the ongoing lack of testing supplies, ongoing lack of federal testing support, and the need to send many of our specimens to national labs for processing.  The turnaround times for those national labs remain very long.

The report again provides a list of those who should be prioritized for testing even if they currently show no symptoms of the disease.

Where Are Today’s New Cases?

If we put together the positive test results and new “presumptive” cases reported today, the overall number of new cases is just 125. Of these, more than 2/3 are from outside the Portland Tri-County area, with Marion County having the highest case count.  Here is the breakdown by county for today:

Benton (2)

Clackamas (7)

Columbia (1)

Curry (1)

Deschutes (1)

Jackson (7)

Jefferson (3)

Klamath (1)

Lane (11)

Linn (11)

Malheur (11)

Marion (23)

Morrow (2)

Multnomah (22)

Polk (2)

Tillamook (2)

Umatilla (5)

Union (1)

Washington (10)

Yamhill (1)

And the Deaths

Oregon’s 487th COVID-19 death is a 96-year-old woman in Deschutes County who tested positive on July 14 and died on Aug.10 in her residence.

Oregon’s 488th COVID-19 death is an 81-year-old woman in Washington County who tested positive on August 25 and died on Sept. 3 at Kaiser Westside Medical Center.

Oregon’s 489th COVID-19 death is a 93-year-old woman in Washington County who tested positive on Aug. 3 and died on Sept. 5 in her residence.

Oregon’s 490th COVID-19 death is a 49-year-old man in Washington County who tested positive on July 17 and died on Sept. 4 in his residence.

Oregon’s 491st COVID-19 death is a 64-year-old man in Malheur County who tested positive on Aug. 24 and died on Sept. 6 at St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise.

Oregon’s 492nd COVID-19 death is a 97-year-old woman in Umatilla County who tested positive on July 16 and died on Sept. 8 in her residence.

Oregon’s 493rd COVID-19 death is an 88-year-old man in Morrow County who tested positive on Aug. 7 and died on Sept. 4 at Good Shepherd Hospital.

Oregon’s 494th COVID-19 death is a 68-year-old man in Lane County who tested positive on Aug. 23 and died on Aug. 30 in his residence.

Additional Graphs:

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Want to See Past Newsletters?

If there was COVID-related information in a past newsletter that you want to go back to, but find you’ve deleted it, you can always go to my legislative website (senatordembrow.com), click on “News and Information,” and you’ll find them all there.  Also, if someone forwarded you this newsletter and you’d like to get it directly, you can sign up for it there.

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AND FINALLY,

Here again are some resources that you will find useful:

If the above links are not providing you with answers to your questions or directing you to the help that you need, please consider me and my office to be a resource.  We’ll do our best to assist you or steer you in the right direction. 

Best,

dembrow signature

Senator Michael Dembrow
District 23

email: Sen.MichaelDembrow@oregonlegislature.gov
web: www.senatordembrow.com
phone: 503-986-1723
mail: 900 Court St NE, S-407, Salem, OR, 97301