May 21st COVID-19 Update

May 21, 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.

In tonight’s newsletter you can read all about the new vaccination incentive lottery, “Take Your Shot Oregon.” It’s part of an effort to get us more quickly to the vaccination percentage that will allow most of the state’s COVID restrictions to be dropped.  It’s open to everyone who has been vaccinated or will have been vaccinated by June 27.  As you’ll see, the prizes are quite significant.

Meanwhile, today was a good day for COVID reporting.  Case counts continue to go down, as do COVID hospitalizations (we’re back down under 300, moving closer to where we were before the recent surge).

Today’s reported vaccination numbers are strong, as they often are on Fridays (a combination of strong midweek vaccination events and reporting from the first part of the week catching up).  In addition, more and more young people between 12 and 15 are getting their shots.  In the first week of eligibility, 36,114 young people in this age group have received their first shot.

We have plenty of doses coming into the state now, just under 400,000 so far this week.

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

TODAY’S CORONAVIRUS AND CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE UPDATE

• New COVID Cases: OHA reports 504 new COVID cases today.  The cumulative number of cases in Oregon since the beginning of the pandemic is 197,851.
• Variant COVID Cases: The most recent variant case counts include 716 (up from 425) cases of the B.1.1.7 (UK) variant, 78 cases (up from 29) of the P.1 (Brazilian) variant, and 56 (up from 35) cases of the B.1.351 (South African) variant.  In addition, we are now seeing 237 (up from 196) cases of the B.1.427 variant, and 631 (up from 586) 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 990 positive tests today. The cumulative total of positive test results since the beginning of the pandemic is now 286,028.
• Total Tests: OHA reported an additional 18,217 tests today. Our cumulative total of reported tests is now 5,005,968.
• Positivity Rate: The test positivity ratio for Oregon today is 5.4%.
• Hospitalization Information:
  • Patients Currently with Confirmed COVID-19: 285 (16 fewer than yesterday)
  • ICU Patients Confirmed w COVID-19: 78 (1 more than yesterday).
  • Available ICU Beds: 156 (5 more than yesterday)
  • Other Available Beds: 552 (127 more than yesterday).
  • Confirmed COVID-19 Patients Currently on Ventilators: 39 (3 fewer than yesterday).
  • Available Ventilators: 791 (12 more than yesterday).
• Deaths: I’m sorry to report 7 additional COVID deaths today.  The total number of COVID deaths in Oregon is now 2,613.
• Vaccinations:
  • As of the end of yesterday, here are the latest numbers:
    • New Immunizations Reported Today: 48,028
      • 28,686 were conducted and reported yesterday
      • 19,342 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 29,816 doses per day.

• Total First and Second Doses Administered So Far: 3,650,737
  • 2,048,515 Pfizer doses
  • 1,518,646 Moderna doses
  • 129,770 Johnson & Johnson doses
• Total Oregonians vaccinated so far: 2,136,133
  • 1,685,321 now fully vaccinated with two doses
• To date, 4,746,235 doses of vaccine have been delivered to sites across Oregon. (That’s an additional 33,900 doses, for a very healthy total of 396,120 for the week so far, which I think may be a record.)
  • 76.9% of these doses have been administered so far. The national average is now 79.3%.
  • 52% of Oregonians have received at least one dose (59.9% of those 16 and older, 62.9% of those 18+, which is the CDC standard).
  • 40.9% of Oregonians are now fully vaccinated (48.1% of those 16 and older).
  • For more details, including the demographics of those receiving the vaccine and the counties in which the vaccines are being administered, here is a link to more information about the vaccine and vaccination protocols.
  • Here is the daily vaccination tracker from Bloomberg.
  • And here is a link to each county's vaccination website. It provides access information for those in Category 1a and 1b
  • Want to see how close each county is to hitting the 65% target for moving to lower risk? Here's an interactive map showing percentages for total population and for eligible population (residents age 16+).  It shows how close each county is to hitting the 65% target.

• Additional Brief Updates:
  • A federal judge has just  blocked another lawsuit by a group of businesses against the Governor’s COVID restrictions.
  • Multnomah County now has 56.4% of its residents vaccinated with at least one dose (66.9% of those 16 and over). Here’s an article from the Gresham Outlook that breaks down the vaccination rates in the different neighborhoods of East County.
  • Vaccinations at the Oregon Convention Center will be winding down next month. First doses of the Pfizer vaccine will be offered until May 27. In June it will be second doses only. The site is scheduled to shut down on Saturday, June 19. Until then, walk-ins are welcome, though appointments are still encouraged. You can schedule an appointment at https://all4oregon.org/.
  • Time has done a profile of Dr. Anthony Fauci that focuses on the contrast between his situation now and his time working in the previous administration.
  • The Washington Post has looked at the many ways in which children with disabilities have been harmed during the pandemic.

Governor Announces “Take Your Shot Oregon”

The Governor held a press conference today to announce a new program to incentivize more Oregonians to get vaccinated as soon as possible.  In partnership with the Oregon Lottery and Treasurer Tobias Read, the OHA will be providing individuals who have been vaccinated by June 27 with a chance to win significant prizes.  Those selected at random will have the chance to win:

• $1 million to one person;
• $10,000 to 36 people, one drawn from each Oregon county;
• A $100,000 scholarship through the Oregon College Savings Plan to five Oregonians age 12-17.

You can read more details in today’s news release from the Governor. news release from the Governor.

The purpose of this vaccination lottery program is to attract those who are not opposed to getting vaccinated but just haven’t been particularly motivated to do so anytime soon.  The Governor and Treasurer have been working with Dr. Ashby Monk from the Global Projects Center at Stanford University, an expert at how “gamification” can lead people to take steps out of a sense of competition and potential self-interest.  He helped design the program that was released today.  They’d been working on it for a while, even before the ultimately very successful incentive program in Ohio was unveiled a few weeks ago.

The Governor is hoping that this incentive program will provide the extra momentum that will get us more quickly to the goal of having 70% of all adult Oregonians vaccinated by the end of June, at which point most COVID restrictions can be dropped everywhere in the state.  It will cost $1.86 million and will be paid with federal Coronavirus Relief Act dollars.

The Governor was joined at the press conference by Dr. Monk, Lottery Director Barry Pack, OHA Director Pat Allen, and OHA Chief Medical Director Dana Hargunani.  A recording is available on YouTube.  (It starts at the 29:35 mark.)  The presentation and Q&A focused on “Take Your Shot Oregon,” the current state of the pandemic in Oregon, and the timeline and process for reopening. 

Here are some of the highlights:

• Even though daily vaccinations have declined somewhat, we remain on track to hit the Governor’s goal of getting us to 70% of adults (18 and above) vaccinated with at least a first dose by the end of June.
• Five counties have moved to Lower Risk status today after hitting the county goal of 65% of those 16 and above, and they will be joined next week by Multnomah County, which has just submitted its required Equity Plan, showing how it will continue to do outreach to get more low-income and residents of color their vaccinations. Multnomah County will move to Lower Risk no later than Friday and as early as Wednesday.
• These six counties--Benton, Lincoln, Hood River, Washington, Multnomah, and Deschutes—are a mix of urban and rural, coastal and inland, large and small.
• The required metric of 18 and over for the 70% threshold is to keep us in line with CDC reporting standards. The CDC numbers are actually more comprehensive  than OHA’s because they include people who’ve been vaccinated through the VA and Tribal Health.  However, they don’t include a breakout for 16 and above, which is how the counties have been reporting.  So, 18-and-over is the standard used for the 70% target (which is the same as President Biden’s target for the Fourth of July), while 16-and-over is the target used for the counties.
• We are now around 250,000 shy of that 70% target here in Oregon.
• We are currently administering just under 30,000 doses a day. At that rate, you might think that we’ll be there in nine days, which would be remarkable.  However, that daily rate of shots in arms includes those getting their second doses, as well as children younger than 18 (including those 12-15 now), who aren’t counted for the 70% target.  So, it will likely take us a little longer.  The OHA is hoping that with the added boost of the “Take Your Shot” program, we’ll be there a little before mid-June, well in advance of the national target of the Fourth of July.
• Why is getting there before mid-June significant? Because it means we’ll beat California (!!!), which is scheduled to drop most of its restrictions by June 15.  That good ole competitive spirit...
• Meanwhile, COVID cases are at last coming back down. Our current weekly average case count is 40% what it was at the beginning of the month. This is in line with the forecast  wh Director Allen gave the following reasons for the decline:
  • The tightening of restrictions a few weeks ago;
  • Warmer weather allowed people to socialize more safely;
  • Many Oregonians do continue to wear masks and maintain distance;
  • And of course more and more Oregonians are getting vaccinated.
• As lagging indicators, hospitalizations and deaths continue to reflect the recent surge in cases.
• While hospitalizations continue create serious stresses on hospitals in some regions of the state (especially Central Oregon), overall numbers are coming down.
• However, hospitalizations of African Americans have spiked in recent weeks.
• OHA and County Health Authorities are putting a particular focus on getting African Americans vaccinated.
• Overall, Oregonians of color are now getting vaccinated at a higher rate than White Oregonians.
• Once we hit the 70% target, people will no longer need to show proof of vaccination to be in indoor public places without masks. Those who are fully vaccinated can do so with minimal risk, even if they are in contact with unvaccinated individuals.   
• Once we hit the 70% target, those who are unvaccinated will also be free to go without a mask indoors. However, if they do so, they will be putting themselves and others who are unvaccinated at risk. 
• Therefore, the goal remains to get as many people as possible vaccinated, even after the 70% target is hit. Outreach will continue, particularly with the harder-to-reach populations.

Where Are Today’s  Cases?

If we put together the positive test results and new “presumptive cases reported today, the overall number of new cases reported is 504.  Here is today’s breakdown by county:

Benton (5)

Clackamas (57)

Columbia (10)

Coos (7)

Crook (4)

Curry (2)

Deschutes (35)

Douglas (23)

Hood River (1)

Jackson (19)

Jefferson (10)

Josephine (4)

Klamath (31)

Lane (38)

Lincoln (1)

Linn (38)

Malheur (1)

Marion (56)

Multnomah (67)

Polk (4)

Tillamook (1)

Umatilla (23)

Wasco (6)

Washington (50)

Wheeler (1)

Yamhill (10)

And the Deaths:

Oregon’s 2,607th COVID-19 death is an 82-year-old man from Umatilla County who tested positive on May 3 and died on May 19 at his residence.

Oregon’s 2,608th COVID-19 death is a 77-year-old man from Clackamas County who tested positive on April 19 and died on May 18 at Kaiser Permanente Sunnyside Medical Center.. 

Oregon’s 2,609th COVID-19 death is a 70-year-old man from Lane County who tested positive on April 23 and died on May 18 at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center at Riverbend.

Oregon’s 2,610th COVID-19 death is a 73-year-old woman from Linn County who tested positive on May 3 and died on May 19. Place of death is being confirmed.

Oregon’s 2,611th COVID-19 death is an 89-year-old man from Deschutes County who tested positive on April 25 and died on May 14 at St. Charles Bend Hospital.

Oregon’s 2,612th COVID-19 death is a 91-year-old woman from Linn County who tested positive on May 10 and died on May 18 at Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital.

Oregon’s 2,613th COVID-19 death is an 80-year-old man from Washington County who tested positive on May 15 and died on May 19 at Portland VA Medical Center.

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

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