Oregon reports 1,211 new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases, 74 new deaths
PORTLAND, Ore. — There are 74 new COVID-19 related deaths in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 4,543, Oregon Health Authority reported at 12:01 a.m. Thursday. Oregon Health Authority (OHA) reported 1,211 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19 as of 12:01 a.m. Thursday, bringing the state total to 371,001.
OHA releases new COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough report
OHA’s most recent update on COVID-19 breakthrough cases, released Thursday, found that 75.4% of the 8,239 reported COVID-19 cases between Oct. 24 and Oct. 30 occurred in unvaccinated people. There were 2,025 breakthrough cases, accounting for 24.6% of all cases. The average age of the breakthrough cases during that period was 47. Fifty breakthrough cases involved residents of care facilities, senior living communities or other congregate care settings. There were 66 cases in people ages 12 to 17. To date, there have been 37,539 COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough cases in Oregon. The average age of all cases is 48. Breakthrough cases have been reported in all 36 counties. Cases of COVID-19 are far more common in unvaccinated people. The report shows that the rate of COVID-19 in unvaccinated people is four times higher than in vaccinated people. To date, 4.4% of all vaccine breakthrough cases have been hospitalized and 1% have died. The average age of vaccinated people who died was 80. Vaccination remains the most effective tool to reduce the spread of COVID-19. The number of vaccine breakthrough cases identified in Oregon remains very small when compared to the more than 2.8 million Oregonians who have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Three vaccination data dashboards get updates
Three of OHA’s COVID-19 data dashboards have been updated to include more information on COVID-19 vaccinations among pediatric and young adult populations; race and ethnicity of more than 100,000 people previously grouped as “Other Race” or who had an unknown rarest race or ethnicity; and those who have received at least one dose of any COVID-19 vaccine, completed the primary vaccine series, and received at least one extra dose of any COVID-19 vaccine. The updates are happening at the same time as the regular monthly pull of ALERT Immunization Information System (IIS) data, which means they are more accurate and reflect what’s in the live system. New age groups to focus on pediatric and young adult populations on the Daily Vaccine Update, Vaccination
Trends, and Vaccination Metrics dashboards
As more adults get vaccinated and as the state’s focus moves to increasing vaccinations among younger populations, adult age groups will be consolidated on the Vaccination Metrics dashboard to better align with recent vaccination recommendations and guidelines. New age groups will include 5-11, 12-17, 18-19, 20-49, 50-64 and 65+. Vaccination data can still be downloaded in more detailed adult age groups. Administrations, allocations and deliveries of Pfizer pediatric doses are available on the Daily Vaccine Update dashboard.
Pfizer pediatric doses will show up as “Unknown/Invalid” on the Daily Update dashboard until ALERT IIS is updated to recognize these doses as valid. Supplemental rarest race and ethnicity data now included on Vaccination Trends and Metrics dashboards
OHA is now reporting data on the races and ethnicities of 100,000 people who received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose and who are from racial and ethnic backgrounds that were previously categorized as “other” or “unknown.” The agency is collaborating with the All Payer All Claims Reporting Program to place nearly half of the 275,000 vaccinated individuals into more common race and ethnicity categories. The goal is to better to understand the effectiveness of the agency’s efforts to improve health equity by increasing vaccination among the state’s rarest race and ethnicity groups, using high-quality data from other agency resources. The race and ethnicity data now include: More than 2,700 people who identify as American Indian or Alaska Native. More than 4,500 people who identify as Asian. More than 6,500 people who identify as Black or African American. More than 7,000 people who identify as Hispanic/Latino/a/x. More than 1,200 people who identify as Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. More than 80,000 people who identify as white. In the COVID-19 vaccination data, people grouped by rarest race and ethnicity are individuals who identify as multiple racial or ethnic identities. However, the method for grouping people by rarest race and ethnicity does not include a multiracial category. They are assigned one race or ethnicity; whichever identity is most rare in Oregon. The order from rarest to most common races and ethnicities for the vaccination data is: Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, Black or African American, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian, Hispanic or Latino/a/x, white, then Other Race. This gives visibility to people who would normally be grouped as multiracial.
Oregon third and booster dose data published on Vaccination Metrics dashboard
Data on third and booster doses of the COVID-19 vaccines are now being reported together on the Vaccination Metrics dashboard, as extra doses people received beyond the primary vaccine series. Reporting of the new data is consistent with guidelines and recommendations for mixing and matching additional doses beyond the primary series. Three new measures for vaccination are defined as: The percentage of people who have initiated COVID-19 vaccination and have received at least one dose of any COVID-19 vaccine. The percentage of people who have completed their primary series or have received one dose of Johnson & Johnson or two doses of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines. The percentage of people who have received an extra dose beyond their primary series of any COVID-19 vaccine. The statewide, age, and race and ethnicity tabs will all be updated by demographic or county for each of those measures as well.
COVID-19 Hospitalizations
The number of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 across Oregon is 532, which is five more than Wednesday. There are 123 COVID-19 patients in intensive care unit (ICU) beds, which is seven more than Wednesday. There are 65 available adult ICU beds out of 688 total (9% availability) and 280 available adult non-ICU beds out of 4,117 (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. 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
Thursday, OHA reported that 18,096 new doses of COVID-19 vaccinations were added to the state immunization registry on Nov. 3. Of that total, 1,126 were initial doses, 840 were second doses and 9,798 were third doses and booster doses. The remaining 6,270 were administered on previous days but were entered into the vaccine registry on Nov. 3. The seven-day running average is now 17,085 doses per day. Oregon has now administered 3,323,667 doses of Pfizer Comirnaty, 2,039,930 doses of Moderna and 230,623 doses of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines. As of today, 2,825,299 people have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 2,618,874 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 Thursday.
COVID-19 Cases & Deaths
The new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases reported Thursday are in the following counties: Benton (11), Clackamas (120), Clatsop (5), Columbia (22), Coos (26), Crook (12), Curry (3), Deschutes (100), Douglas (52), Grant (3), Hood River (5), Jackson (61), Jefferson (15), Josephine (26), Klamath (38), Lake (4), Lane (79), Lincoln (10), Linn (55), Malheur (7), Marion (124), Morrow (3), Multnomah (140), Polk (28), Sherman (3), Tillamook (18), Umatilla (27), Union (4), Wallowa (8), Wasco (15), Washington (107), Wheeler (2) and Yamhill (78).