December 9th COVID-19 Update

December 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 difficult times.

Today we see a continuation of the trends that we’ve been seeing over the last few days:  a stable (high) number of new cases, very high numbers of hospitalizations and deaths, very large increases at the national level.

Legislators received a briefing today from the OHA on the forthcoming rollout of vaccines here in Oregon.  I will say that the news is very positive, but also very sobering.  Given the initial analysis of the new vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, they will likely be approved any day now, and we may well see their first applications as early as the middle of next week.  (Canada has just approved their first vaccines, which should begin to be administered by the end of this week or early next week.)  The first recipients will be providers at hospitals and staff and residents of skilled nursing facilities (the latter being those most at risk of death from the coronavirus). For those of you with loved ones living in these settings, this will come as an enormous relief.

Next up will be staff and residents in other congregate care (also highly at risk of the spread of the virus).  This initial batch of vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna is pretty much guaranteed to be available very soon, and it will likely make a huge difference in bringing down the death rate, given the focus on those most vulnerable to severe consequences from the virus.

Unfortunately, it’s not clear how quickly subsequent batches of the vaccines will be coming to the states.  It may take a while for additional batches to be manufactured and distributed.  You’ve probably heard that the White House chose not to purchase additional vaccines from Pfizer last summer, which might have gotten more vaccines out to the states sooner.  We’ll see.

What it means is that good news is potentially coming very quickly for some, but others will likely need to be patient a while longer.  This will be a real challenge for us all—i.e., to see the vaccine making a difference but not having enough of it to vaccinate everyone right away.   

Legislators will be getting more specific information about the rollout timetable very soon, and I’ll be sure to share it with you as soon as we get it.  It’s really important that people have a clear-eyed understanding of what is before us, so that we can make plans accordingly.

Please stay safe, and let me know if you have any questions about today’s newsletter. 

TODAY’S CORONAVIRUS AND CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE UPDATE

• New COVID Cases: OHA reports 1,243 new COVID cases today.  This count is a combination of positive test results and those who are presumed positive (see definition below).  The cumulative number of cases in Oregon since the beginning of the pandemic is 88,287.
• Positive Test Results: OHA reports 1,308 positive test results. The cumulative total of positive test results since the beginning of the pandemic is 125,430.
• Total Tests: OHA reports an additional 18,662 test results. Our cumulative total of tests is 2,193,822.
• Positivity Rate: The average positivity rate for Oregon today is 7.0%.  The national ratio today is 11.9%.
• Deaths: I’m sorry to have to report 30 additional COVID deaths today. You can read about the Oregonians we lost further down in the newsletter. The total number of COVID deaths in Oregon is now 1.110.
• Hospitalized: OHA reports 176 new COVID hospitalizations. The cumulative number of those who have been hospitalized with COVID is 5,240.
• Presumptive Cases: OHA is including “presumptive COVID-19 cases” in its 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.  
• Other Hospital Information:
  • Patients Currently with COVID-19 Symptoms (who may or may not have received a positive test result yet): 642 (34 more than yesterday). Of those, 580 (27 more than yesterday) have already received a positive test back.
  • Available ICU Beds: 149 (10 fewer than yesterday)
  • Other Available Beds: 525 (70 fewer than yesterday).
  • ICU Patients w COVID-19 Symptoms: 139 (3 more than yesterday).
  • COVID-19 Patients Currently on Ventilators: 62 (3 more than yesterday).
  • Available Ventilators: 752 (12 more than yesterday).
• Dashboards:
  • Oregon (OHA)
  • Multnomah, Washington, Clackamas, & Yamhill Counties
• Today’s National Numbers:
  • Total Tests: 209,372,157 (up 1,790,392 from yesterday).
  • Total Cases: 15,142,845 (up 212,282 from yesterday.)
  • Deaths: 280,454 (up 3,087 from yesterday).
  • These national numbers come from the COVID Tracking Project. You can follow them here.
• Additional Brief Updates:
  • The most recent Weekly COVID Update has just come out. So has the latest Outbreak Update.  I’ll report on it tomorrow.  You’ll see record highs again for every metric.

Senate Committee Meetings This Week

Monday marked the beginning of two weeks of “Leg Days,” where legislative committees meet (remotely for now) to hear updates on issues of concern and introduce the first round of bills for the next session.  This week is devoted to Senate hearings, and next week for House hearings.  I’ll post the House schedule tomorrow or the next day. (In the meantime, you’ll find the tentative House agendas here.  Scroll down past the Senate agendas to the House agendas.

Here's the calendar for tomorrow’s Senate hearings.  Each link will take you to the agenda, meeting materials, and meeting video. 

Thursday, December 10

Senate Government Accountability and Information Technology,  9 a.m.

Senate Judiciary (meeting jointly with House Judiciary), 9 a.m.

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 reported for is 1,243.  Two-thirds of today’s new cases come from outside the Portland Tri-County area.  Here is the breakdown of reported cases by county for today:

Baker (3)

Benton (11)

Clackamas (109)

Clatsop (6)

Columbia (7)

Coos (18)

Crook (5)

Curry (1)

Deschutes (51)

Douglas (27)

Grant (4)

Hood River (16)

Jackson (54)

Jefferson (22)

Josephine (16)

Klamath (36)

Lake (3)

Lane (85)

Lincoln (14)

Linn (33)

Malheur (22)

Marion (192)

Morrow (3)

Multnomah (208)

Polk (28)

Tillamook (5)

Umatilla (30)

Union (7)

Wasco (9)

Washington (163)

Wheeler (3)

Yamhill (57)

And the Deaths

Oregon’s 1081^st COVID-19 death is a 46-year-old woman in Clackamas County who tested positive on Nov. 21 and died on Dec. 6 at Providence Portland Medical Center. \

Oregon’s 1082^nd COVID-19 death is a 59-year-old man in Clackamas County who tested positive on Dec. 1 and died on Dec. 5 at Providence Portland Medical Center.

Oregon’s 1083^rd COVID-19 death is a 94-year-old woman in Clackamas County who tested positive on Nov. 15 and died on Dec. 2 at her residence.

Oregon’s 1084^th COVID-19 death is an 89-year-old woman in Clackamas County who tested positive on Nov. 5 and died on Nov. 20 at her residence.

Oregon’s 1085^th COVID-19 death is an 82-year-old woman in Clackamas County who tested positive on Nov. 22 and died on Nov. 25 at her residence.

Oregon’s 1086^th COVID-19 death is a 72-year-old man in Klamath County who tested positive on Nov. 27 and died on Dec. 7 at Sky Lakes Medical Center.

Oregon’s 1087^th COVID-19 death is a 75-year-old woman in Lane County who tested positive on Nov. 15 and died on Dec. 4 at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center Riverbend.

Oregon’s 1088^th COVID-19 death is a 79-year-old man in Lane County who tested positive on Nov. 18 and died on Dec. 2 at her residence.

Oregon’s 1089^th COVID-19 death is a 59-year-old man in Lane County who tested positive on Nov. 17 and died on Nov. 27 at Portland Providence Medical Center.

Oregon’s 1090^th COVID-19 death is a 65-year-old woman in Lane County who tested positive on Dec. 3 and died on Dec. 4 at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center Riverbend.

Oregon’s 1091^st COVID-19 death is a 69-year-old woman in Lane County who tested positive on Nov. 24 and died on Dec. 5 at her residence.

Oregon’s 1092^nd COVID-19 death is an 84-year-old man in Linn County who tested positive on Oct. 21 and died on Nov. 28 at his residence.

Oregon’s 1093^rd COVID-19 death is a 75-year-old woman in Marion County who tested positive on Nov. 15 and died on Nov. 24 at her residence.

Oregon’s 1094^th COVID-19 death is a 76-year-old man in Marion County who tested positive on Nov. 16 and died on Dec. 8 at Salem Hospital.

Oregon’s 1095^th COVID-19 death is an 86-year-old woman in Multnomah County who tested positive on Nov. 23 and died on Dec. 6 at her residence.

Oregon’s 1096^th COVID-19 death is a 72-year-old woman in Multnomah County who tested positive on Nov. 21 and died on Nov. 28. 

Oregon’s 1097^th COVID-19 death is an 88-year-old woman in Multnomah County who died on Dec. 6 at her residence. The death certificate listed COVID-19 disease or SARS-CoV-2 as a cause of death or a significant condition contributing to death.

Oregon’s 1098^th COVID-19 death is a 72-year-old man in Multnomah County who tested positive on Nov. 19 and died on Nov. 25 at his residence.

Oregon’s 1099^th COVID-19 death is an 82-year-old man in Multnomah County who tested positive on Nov. 27 and died on Nov. 27 at Adventist Medical Center.

Oregon’s 1100^th COVID-19 death is a 97-year-old man in Multnomah County who tested positive on Nov. 23 and died on Dec. 3 at Legacy Mt. Hood Medical Center.

Oregon’s 1101^st COVID-19 death is a 97-year-old man in Multnomah County who tested positive on Nov. 23 and died on Dec. 3 at his residence.

Oregon’s 1102^nd COVID-19 death is a 77-year-old woman in Multnomah County who tested positive on Nov.18 and died on Nov. 23 at her residence.

Oregon’s 1103^rd COVID-19 death is an 83-year-old man in Multnomah County who tested positive on Nov. 16 and died on Nov. 27 at Adventist Hospital.

Oregon’s 1104^th COVID-19 death is a 62-year-old man in Multnomah County who tested positive on Nov. 30 and died on Nov. 30. The location of death and the presence of underlying conditions is being confirmed.

Oregon’s 1105^th COVID-19 death is a 61-year-old woman in Multnomah County who tested positive on Dec. 3 and died on Dec. 7 at Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center.

Oregon’s 1106^th COVID-19 death is a 39-year-old man in Umatilla County who tested positive on Oct. 16 and died on Nov. 1 at Kadlec Regional Medical Center.

Oregon’s 1107^th COVID-19 death is a 94-year-old woman in Washington County who became symptomatic on Nov. 25, after contact with a confirmed case, and died on Dec. 1 at her residence.

Oregon’s 1108^th COVID-19 death is an 82-year-old woman in Washington County who tested positive on Nov. 22 and died on Dec. 4 at her residence.

Oregon’s 1109^th COVID-19 death is a 97-year-old woman in Washington County who tested positive on Dec. 2 and died on Dec. 6 at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center.

Oregon’s 1110^st COVID-19 death is a 62-year-old man in Clatsop County who tested positive on Nov. 29 and died on Dec. 7 at Columbia Memorial Hospital.

CORRECTIONS FROM OHA:

Updated information is available for Oregon’s 886^th death, which was originally reported on Nov.28. She was originally reported as a 62-year-old woman from Douglas county. She was an 87-year -old woman from Douglas county. She has underlying conditions.

Updated information is available for Oregon’s 1075^th death, which was originally reported yesterday. He was an 87-year-old man from Polk County. He was originally reported as a Multnomah County resident.

Updated information is available for Oregon’s 1080^th death, which was originally reported yesterday. It was a duplicate. He was a 78-year-old man from Yamhill County who tested positive on Nov. 14 and died on Nov. 26 at his residence. He had underlying conditions.

Additional Graphs:

**You can find a breakdown of regional availability here.

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:

• Multnomah County has a status report on reopening.
• You can view the reopening status of all 36 counties here.
• Here is the OHA’s coronavirus page, with links to a number of resources. 
• Oregon's Office of Emergency Management now has a website for information about COVID-19.
• You can sign up here for regular coronavirus updates from OHA.
• Multnomah County has an excellent website with lots of really important advice and guidance.
• Here’s one from the Governor’s Office.
• The Employment Department has put together a webpage with Q&A’s on a number of employment issues related to COVID-19 (e.g., eligibility for Unemployment Insurance benefits).
• The Oregon Education Department has a new site for COVID-19 updates.
• The Department of Corrections has a COVID tracking website.

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,

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