May 10th COVID-19 Update

Michael Dembrow

May 10, 2021

Dear Neighbors and Friends,

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.

Case counts have dropped today, which is great news. But now for a grain of salt.  It’s Monday, and that means it reflects the cases reported as of midnight last night.  Which means that it was subject to weekend underreporting.  Several counties are clearly underreported and some have not reported at all.

Having said that, there’s no reason to believe that the upward trajectory of the virus hasn’t ended.  Today’s county metrics report shows a slight reduction in our statewide infection rate, the first time we’ve seen any kind of reduction in weeks. We’ll have a better sense of where we’re headed when the weekly COVID report is released on Wednesday.

As expected, the FDA has approved Pfizer’s request for an emergency authorization to extend vaccination to youths aged 12 to 16.  We’re still awaiting final approval and administration details from the CDC.  OHA is currently working on what the distribution rollout will look like here in Oregon.

I’ll let you know when I hear more.

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

 

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TODAY’S CORONAVIRUS AND CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE UPDATE

  • New COVID Cases: OHA reports 388 new COVID cases today.  The cumulative number of cases in Oregon since the beginning of the pandemic is 191,774.
  • Variant COVID Cases: The reported variant case numbers remain unchanged from the most recent update.  They remain 311 (up from 168) cases of the B.1.1.7 (UK) variant, 18 cases (up from 13) of the P.1 (Brazilian) variant, and 28 (up from 18) cases of the B.1.351 (South African) variant.  In addition, we are now seeing 159 (up from 177) cases of the B.1.427 variant, and 566 (up from 519) of the B.1.429 variant.  OHA is now producing a Variant Tableau dashboard providing current variant case numbers for the state as a whole and for various parts of the state.
  • Positive Test Results: OHA reported 566 positive tests today. The cumulative total of positive test results since the beginning of the pandemic is now 275,890.
  • Total Tests: OHA reported an additional 8,994 tests today. Our cumulative total of reported tests is now 4,838,345.
  • Positivity Rate: The test positivity ratio for Oregon today is 6.3%.
  • Hospitalization Information:
    • Patients Currently with Confirmed COVID-19: 326 (8 more than yesterday)
    • ICU Patients Confirmed w COVID-19: 78 (2 more than yesterday).
    • Available ICU Beds: 159 (11 more than Friday)
    • Other Available Beds: 606 (94 more than Friday).
    • Confirmed COVID-19 Patients Currently on Ventilators: 38 (1 more than Friday).
    • Available Ventilators: 794 (7 more than Friday).
  • Deaths: I’m sorry to report 12 additional COVID deaths today.  The total number of COVID deaths in Oregon is now 2,533.
  • Vaccinations:
    • As of the end of yesterday, here are the latest numbers:
      • New Immunizations Reported Today: 28,659
        • 22,263 were conducted yesterday
        • 6,396 were conducted earlier, but the reports were received yesterday (there can potentially be a three-day window for reporting)
        • The 7-day running average is now 34,030 doses per day.
      • Total First and Second Doses Administered So Far: 3,344,102
        • 1,828,741 Pfizer doses
        • 1,401,315 Moderna doses
        • 112,592 Johnson & Johnson doses
      • Total Oregonians vaccinated so far: 1,982,835
        • 1,467,659 now fully vaccinated with two doses
      • To date, 4,067,715 doses of vaccine have been delivered to sites across Oregon. (That’s 32,620 more than yesterday.)
  • Additional Brief Updates:
    • OHA released the latest County COVID Metrics Report.  As you’ll see, for the first time in weeks, we see a slight reduction in infection rates for the state as a whole and for many counties, including Multnomah.
    • University of Oregon President Michael Schill announced today that UO (like OSU and PSU) will be requiring students and staff to be vaccinated against COVID next fall.
    • And so did Western Oregon University. As you can read here, WOU is even offering students a $25 textbook voucher as an incentive to get vaccinated.
    • We learned today that the big Convention Center site will be closing down in June, as attention shifts to getting vaccines to those harder to reach. Here's more.
    • While several other states are passing laws to cut the $300 federal bonus from unemployment checks (in order to force more people back to work), here in Oregon a slight increase in unemployment benefits was announced today.
    • The New York Times has created an interactive map showing the reopening plans and mask mandates for all 50 states.
    • With COVID cases rising in most communities in Oregon, and schools reopening at the same time, it was inevitable that case counts in schools would be going up. Is it the result of school spread or community spread, or both?  OPB’s Elizabeth Miller dives into this question.

 

FDA Extends Emergency Use Authorization for Children 12 to 16

The OHA released the following announcement earlier today:

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) extended emergency use authorization to the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for young people ages 12 to 16. This approval will be reviewed by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). ACIP will make a recommendation to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director who will issue guidance for administering the vaccine to this age group. The Western States Scientific Safety Review Workgroup (WSSSRW) will discuss the data and review process in order to issue a memo to governors from participating states. ACIP and the WSSSRW meet on May 12.  

In anticipation of recommendations for administration of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to this age group, OHA is working with health care providers, pharmacies, community-based organizations and school districts to make the Pfizer vaccine readily available for eligible youth throughout the state. We will continue our focus on making culturally relevant resources about the safety and effectiveness of vaccines available so students and parents can make informed decisions about protecting themselves and their families. Our recommendation is that all eligible people in Oregon get vaccinated, and that, until we have sufficient numbers vaccinated, everyone follow public health safety guidance. 

You can read more about Emergency Use Authorization on the OHA blog.  

 

OHA Will Hold a Q&A on COVID-19 Variants

OHA has scheduled a Facebook Live on Wednesday at 11:30 to answer questions on the COVID variants.  OHA Senior Health Advisor, Dr. Melissa Sutton, and OHSU Assistant Professor of Medicine, Dr. Bill Messer, will be on hand to answer your questions.  You can join them here. here.

 

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 is 388.  Here is today’s breakdown by county:

Baker (1)

Benton (21)

Clackamas (76)

Columbia (12)

Coos (1)

Crook (3)

Curry (1)

Deschutes (56)

Douglas (6)

Harney (3)

Hood River (2)

Jackson (8)

Jefferson (4)

Josephine (7)

Lane (24)

Linn (23)

Marion (45)

Multnomah (76)

Polk (3)

Tillamook (2)

Wasco (1)

Washington (4)

Yamhill (6)

 

And the Deaths:

Oregon’s 2,531st COVID-19 death is a 90-year-old woman from Multnomah County who tested positive on April 25 and died on April 27 at Salem Hospital.

Oregon’s 2,532nd COVID-19 death is a 70-year-old man from Lane County who tested positive on April 18 and died on May 6 at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center.

Oregon’s 2,533rd COVID-19 death is a 63-year-old man from Josephine County who tested positive on March 8 and died on May 2 at his residence.

 

 

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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: 503-281-0608
mail: 900 Court St NE, S-407, Salem, OR, 97301