COVID-19 in Oregon, March 3

Oregon reports 696 new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases, 4 new deaths
PORTLAND, Ore. — There are four new COVID-19-related deaths in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 6,652, Oregon Health Authority (OHA) reported at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday. OHA reported 696 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19 as of 12:01 a.m. today, bringing the state total to 695,323.

COVID-19 weekly cases, hospitalizations decline, deaths rise
OHA’s COVID-19 Weekly Data Report, released Wednesday, showed declines in weekly cases and COVID-19-related hospitalizations, but higher deaths. OHA reported 5,337 new cases of COVID-19 during the week of Monday, Feb. 21 through Sunday, Feb. 28 – a 43% decline from the previous week, and a 90% drop from the peak case level Oregon experienced the week of Jan. 17 through Jan 23. During the week of Feb. 21 through Feb. 28, there were 438 COVID-19-related hospitalizations, a 31% decrease over the previous week. COVID-19-related deaths increased to 137 from 111 the previous week. Reported COVID-19 test results dropped 13%. There were 113,657 tests administered. Test positivity dropped to 6.4%. Wednesday’s COVID-19 Weekly Outbreak report shows 268 total active outbreaks in care facilities, senior living communities and congregate living settings, with three or more confirmed COVID-19 cases or one or more COVID-19-related deaths.

COVID-19 Hospitalizations
The number of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 across Oregon is 424, which is 36 fewer than Tuesday. There are 71 COVID-19 patients in intensive care unit (ICU) beds, which is three fewer than Tuesday. There are 99 available adult ICU beds out of 655 total (15% availability) and 319 available adult non-ICU beds out of 4,270 (7% availability). The total number of patients in hospital beds may fluctuate between report times. The numbers do not reflect admissions per day, nor the length of hospital stay. Staffing limitations are not captured in this data and may further limit bed capacity. Note: Please do not visit an emergency department for COVID-19 testing unless you require emergency care for your symptoms. Emergency departments in Oregon are under significant strain. You can find a test here. If you have a medical condition that doesn’t require emergency care, contact your provider. An urgent care center may also help you get the care you need and will save emergency departments from added strain.

Vaccinations in Oregon
Wednesday, OHA reported that 6,044 new doses of COVID-19 vaccinations were added to the state immunization registry March 1. Of that total, 455 were initial doses, 516 were second doses and 1,218 were third doses and booster doses. The remaining 3,707 were administered on previous days but were entered into the vaccine registry March 1. The seven-day running average is now 3,649 doses per day. Oregon has now administered 4,149,502 doses of Pfizer Comirnaty, 235,132 doses of Pfizer pediatric, 2,716,961 doses of Moderna and 268,720 doses of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines. As of Wednesday, 3,160,879 people have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and 2,866,217 people have completed a COVID-19 vaccine series. These data are preliminary and subject to change. Updated vaccination data are provided on Oregon’s COVID-19 data dashboards and have been updated Wednesday.

COVID-19 Cases
The new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases reported today are in the following counties: Baker (3), Benton (25), Clackamas (54), Clatsop (3), Columbia (10), Coos (10), Crook (10), Curry (2), Deschutes (25), Douglas (19), Gilliam (1), Harney (1), Hood River (12), Jackson (59), Jefferson (2), Josephine (26), Klamath (12), Lake (1), Lane (77), Lincoln (5), Linn (44), Marion (40), Morrow (2), Multnomah (121), Polk (8), Tillamook (2), Umatilla (18), Union (1), Wasco (4), Washington (89) and Yamhill (10).