The Oregon Health Authority announced 529 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, along with seven new deaths, increasing the state’s number of coronavirus deaths to 2,031.
The new cases come as Gov. Kate Brown has announced that restaurants, bars and breweries in the Portland metropolitan area may reopen for indoor dining with limited capacity starting on Friday.
The drop in COVID-19 cases led Brown to move 10 Oregon counties – including Multnomah, Clackamas and Washington – from the “extreme” category to the “high” risk category, allowing partial reopening for some companies, including restaurants, gyms and cinemas for the first time since November.
Gyms in the Portland area can also reopen for internal training for up to 50 people starting on Friday. Brown relaxed gym restrictions a little last month, allowing up to six clients to enter, after internal training ended in much of the state last November, when coronavirus infections were on the rise.
The state opened general vaccines for Oregon residents aged 80 and over on Monday, a day ravaged by online confusion and frustration when appointments in the metropolitan area filled up hours after registration opened.
Many were able to make appointments next week, but the local health professionals who run the two Portland area vaccination clinics were unable to say on what date the new appointments would open for reservation. It appears, however, that the next available consultations are unlikely to be until Wednesday, February 17.
Where the new cases are by municipality: Baker (4), Benton (20), Clackamas (65), Clatsop (2), Columbia (3), Coos (9), Crook (1), Curry (3), Deschutes (5), Douglas (16), Grant (1), Harney (18), Hood River (10), Jackson (19), Jefferson (5), Josephine (20), Klamath (9), Lake (13), Lane (39), Lincoln (1) , Linn (9), Malheur (1), Marion (54), Morrow (3), Multnomah (78), Polk (19), Tillamook (1), Umatilla (29), Union (5), Wallowa (9) , Wasco (7), Washington (40) and Yamhill (11).
Who died: The 2,025th death was a 68-year-old woman from Columbia County who tested positive on December 22 and died on February 4 at her home.
The 2,026th death was a 92-year-old woman from Deschutes County who tested positive on November 23 and died on December 9 at her home.
The 2,027th death was of a 92-year-old man from Josephine County who tested positive on December 21 and died on January 17 at his home.
The 2,028th death was an 82-year-old man from Lane County, who tested positive on December 16 and died on February 6 at McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center.
The 2,029th death was a 79-year-old man from Marion County, who tested positive on January 25 and died on February 2 at his home.
The 2,030th death was a 77-year-old woman from Union County who tested positive on January 22 and died on February 7 at Hospital Grande Ronde.
The 2,031st death was a 44-year-old man from Hood River County who tested positive on January 25 and died on February 6. The place of death is being confirmed.
Unless noted above, each person who died had underlying health problems or state officials were working to determine whether the person had underlying health problems.
The prevalence of infections: On Tuesday, the state released 622 new positive tests out of 14,063 tests performed, which is equivalent to 4.4% positivity.
OHA said it received about 3,000 negative laboratory results on February 8 from tests carried out from June 1 to February 2 due to a delay in the report. Total laboratory results are higher on February 8 than normal, but there was no change in the percentage of positivity, said the health authority.
Who is in the hospital: The state reported that 226 Oregon residents with confirmed coronavirus infections were hospitalized on Tuesday, five more than on Monday. Of these, 53 patients with coronavirus were in intensive care units, two less than on Monday.
Vaccines administered: Oregon administered 588,740 first and second doses of 801,125 received, which is about 73.5% of its supply. Oregon reported 16,340 new doses administered, which include 7,863 on Monday and the remainder of previous days.
Since it started: Oregon reported 147,932 confirmed or suspected infections and 2,031 deaths, among the lowest per capita numbers in the country. To date, the state has reported more than 3,328,998 test lab reports.
– Jaimie Ding
[email protected]; 503-221-4395; @j_dingdingding