October 19th COVID-19 Update

Michael Dembrow

October 19, 2020

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

The current COVID plateau continues, which is good in that the increase in cases has stabilized.  Unfortunately, testing is back down, and the result is again a higher positivity rates.  We sadly hear of eight additional COVID deaths today, involving people in their 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s from around the state.  Hospitalization numbers appear to be declining again.

On the wildfire front, everything appears to be very stable, and as a result I’m no longer included the daily progress charts.  You’ll find updated information about the recovery effort, with the number of those who have successfully applied for FEMA relief now topping 20,000.  

Please let me know if you have any questions about anything in this newsletter.

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TODAY’S CORONAVIRUS AND CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE UPDATE

  • Positive Cases: OHA reports that 810 additional Oregonians have tested positive for COVID since Friday, an average of 270 per day. The cumulative total since the beginning of the pandemic is 37,781.
  • Total Tests: The number of reported tests has increased by 13,271 since Friday, an average of 4,424 per day. The cumulative total is now 786,496.
  • Ratio: The percentage of positive test results for the last three days is 6.1%.  The national ratio today is 4.8%.
  • Deaths: I regret to have to report 8 additional deaths due to the coronavirus today. You can read more about those we lost further down in the newsletter. The total number of COVID deaths in Oregon is now 627.
  • Hospitalized: OHA reports an additional 61 COVID hospitalizations since Friday, an average of 20 per day. The cumulative number of those who have been hospitalized with COVID is now 2,947.
  • 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 total number of those counted as presumed positives is 2,013.
  • Other Hospital Information:
    • Patients Currently with COVID-19 Symptoms (who may or may not have received a positive test result yet): 168 (22 fewer than Friday). Of those, 124 have already received a positive test back.
    • Available ICU Beds: 177 (16 more than Friday)
    • Other Available Beds: 722 (58 more than Friday).
    • ICU Patients w COVID-19 Symptoms: 50 (6 more than Friday).
    • COVID-19 Patients Currently on Ventilators: 11 (4 fewer than Friday).
    • Available Ventilators: 778 (8 fewer than Friday).
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  • Today’s National Numbers:
  • Additional Brief Updates:
    • OHA has released new guidelines for face coverings. The guidance no longer suggests that wearing face shields alone is adequate protection, and Oregonians are discouraged from doing so. (Thanks to the constituents who’ve been writing me seeking clarity on this recommendation, and thanks to OHA for acting on this request for more clarity.) The new guidance also extends the situations in which face coverings are recommended. The guidance now requires that people wear face coverings in all private and public workplaces, including classrooms, offices, meeting rooms and workspaces, unless someone is alone in an office or in a private workspace. You’ll find the new guidance here.
    • OHA has sent the CDC its plan for distributing the eventual COVID-19 vaccine here in Oregon. The deadline for such plans to be sent was October 16.  You’ll find it here.
    • Marion County is extending the deadline for homeowners to file the permission paperwork to have debris removed from their property free of charge. The deadline had previously been last Friday. It is being extended until this coming Friday.  You can read more about the extension here.

Monday Wildfire Recovery/Response Update

The ODF dashboard for the six major fires again shows no differences in containment or acres burned, so I’m going to dispense with the status charts for now.  I’ll bring them back if there are changes.

Again, for maps and up-to-the-minute details on the individual fires, I’d direct you to OEM’s State of Oregon Fires and Hotspots Dashboard.

The Oregon Emergency Management just released their latest update.  Here are the latest highlights:

  • The number of fatalities (9) and missing persons (1) remains the same.
  • The number of residences reported destroyed is 4,002. More than 1,400 structures other than residences have also been destroyed.
  • According to the Red Cross, 1,866 Oregonians remain in emergency housing. Of those, 98 are living in RVs and tents, and 1,768 are in hotels/motels and other short-term settings.  There are no evacuees living in indoor congregate shelters any longer.
  • The number of Oregonians who have registered with FEMA for individual assistance has continued to increase and is currently at 20,976. FEMA has already approved for $19.8 million in assistance grants.
  • Still, if you know of anyone who has NOT yet registered, please direct them to the following:

Wildfire Informational Resources

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 for today is 266.  Here is the breakdown by county for today:

Clackamas (24)

Coos (8)

Crook (2)

Deschutes (15)

Douglas (1)

Jackson (18)

Josephine (1)

Lane (40)

Linn (2)

Malheur (5)

Marion (39)

Multnomah (68)

Polk (3)

Tillamook (1)

Umatilla (9)

Washington (25)

Yamhill (5)

And the Deaths:

Message from OHA:  Updated information is available about Oregon’s 512th COVID-19 death, a 73-year-old woman in Washington County on Sept. 1. Due to an updated death certificate, COVID-19 disease or SARS-CoV-2 is no longer considered as a cause or as a significant condition that contributed to her death. As a result, OHA is renumbering our reported deaths starting with 620 today.

Oregon’s 620th COVID-19 death is an 89-year-old woman in Lane County who tested positive on Oct.13 and died on Oct. 17 at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center Riverbend.

Oregon’s 621st COVID-19 death is a 61-year-old man in Lane County who tested positive on Oct. 11 and died on Oct. 16 at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center Riverbend. He had underlying conditions.

Oregon’s 622nd COVID-19 death is an 89-year-old woman in Lane County who tested positive on Oct. 11 and died on Oct. 17, at McKenzie Willamette Medical Center. She had underlying conditions.

Oregon’s 623rd COVID-19 death is an 81-year-old woman in Crook County who tested positive on Oct. 12 and died on Oct. 17 at her residence. She had underlying conditions.

Oregon’s 624th COVID-19 death is a 91-year-old man in Multnomah County who tested positive on Oct. 11 and died on Oct. 15 at Legacy Emanuel Medical Center. He had underlying conditions.

Oregon’s 625th COVID-19 death is 69-year-old woman in Umatilla County who tested positive on Oct. 5 and died on Oct. 14 at Good Shepherd Medical Center.

Oregon’s 626th COVID-19 death is a 71-year-old man in Multnomah County who tested positive on Sept. 21 and died on Oct. 12 at Adventist Medical Center.

Oregon’s 627th COVID-19 death is an 85-year-old man in Multnomah County who tested positive on Oct. 2 and died on Oct. 13 at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center.

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.

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