The Oregon Health Authority reported on Thursday 466 new cases of coronavirus and six deaths, including the state’s youngest victim: a boy from Umatilla County who died last month.
That death on January 17 is that of Oregon only among children up to nine years old. The youngest victim of the state’s COVID-19 was a 19-year-old man from Marion County who died in December.
The baby had undisclosed underlying health conditions and died the same day he tested positive, according to the Oregon Health Authority.
“The loss of such a young life is an indescribable tragedy for a family,” said Governor Kate Brown in a statement.
“Dan and I send our thoughts and condolences to the mother and family of this child, whose pain must be unimaginable at this point,” added Brown, referring to her husband. “The hearts of all Oregon residents are with you today.”
Oregon reported just under 7,000 identified cases of coronavirus among children nine and under. Only 89 of these children required hospitalization, or about 1%.
Children are less likely to develop severe cases of COVID-19 compared to adults, said Dr. Dean Sidelinger, the state’s health officer and epidemiologist, in a statement. Infant deaths from COVID-19 are “extremely rare”.
“There are still risks for children to develop more serious illnesses caused by COVID-19, and we continue to encourage all parents to seek emergency medical care for their children if certain symptoms are present,” said Sidelinger.
These symptoms include difficulty breathing, new confusion, bluish lips or face, being unable to wake up or staying awake when you are not tired, or chest pain or pressure that does not go away.
Where the new cases are by municipality: Baker (6), Benton (17), Clackamas (31), Clatsop (2), Columbia (6), Coos (8), Crook (9), Curry (4), Deschutes (19), Douglas (25), Harney (1), Hood River (2), Jackson (27), Jefferson (12), Josephine (13), Klamath (6), Lake (3), Lane (41), Lincoln (1), Linn (5) , Malheur (3), Marion (46), Morrow (2), Multnomah (66), Polk (13), Tillamook (3), Umatilla (21), Union (2), Wasco (4), Washington (54) and Yamhill (14).
Who died: Oregon’s 2,144th COVID-19-related death is from a 76-year-old man from Deschutes County, who tested positive on February 10 and died on February 15 at St. Charles Bend Hospital.
The death of 2,145 is an 84-year-old man from Deschutes County who tested positive on February 8 and died on February 12 at his home.
Oregon’s 2,146th death is a 68-year-old man from Marion County who tested positive on November 18 and died on February 14 at Kaiser Permanente Westside Medical Center.
The death of 2,147 is an 84-year-old man from Josephine County who tested positive on January 25 and died on February 12 at his home.
The 2,148 death in Oregon is a 72-year-old man from Coos County who tested positive on January 16 and died on February 11 at Oregon Health & Science University Hospital.
The 2,149th death is of a baby boy in Umatilla County, who tested positive on January 17 and died on January 17 at the Kadlec Regional Medical Center.
Each person had underlying medical conditions.
The prevalence of infections: The state reported 640 new positive tests out of 17,415 tests performed, equaling a positivity rate of 3.7%.
Who was infected: New confirmed or presumed infections grew between the following age groups: 0-9 (18); 10-19 (58); 20-29 (112); 30-39 (75); 40-49 (62); 50-59 (51); 60-69 (36); 70-79 (24); 80 and older (20).
Who is in the hospital: The state reported 169 people with confirmed coronavirus infections at the hospital on Thursday, down 21 from Wednesday. Of these, 52 patients with coronavirus are in intensive care units, down two from Wednesday.
Vaccines: Oregon reported that 729,823 doses of the vaccine were administered, or about 79% of the doses received. Oregon reported 22,663 new doses administered, which include 14,414 Wednesday and the remainder of previous days.
Since it started: Oregon reported 151,713 confirmed or suspected infections and 2,149 deaths, among the lowest per capita numbers in the country. To date, the state has reported 3,449,326 test lab reports.
– Brad Schmidt; [email protected]; 503-294-7628; @_brad_schmidt