Coronavirus in Oregon: Hospitalizations surge past 300, setting up renewed

The Oregon Health Authority on Monday reported one COVID-19 death and 630 new coronavirus cases as the number of statewide hospitalizations surged – setting up a shutdown of indoor dining in hard-hit counties this week.

Gov. Kate Brown is expected to announce Tuesday which counties will face renewed restrictions for restaurants and gyms, but the list appears likely to include Multnomah and Clackamas counties, based on preliminary state data.

The looming restrictions were triggered Monday because Oregon reported 319 people actively hospitalized with confirmed cases of COVID-19, exceeding the 300-person benchmark set by Brown earlier this month.

With average cases at 818 a day and projected to continue climbing into early May, state officials also revised quarantine guidance for people exposed to coronavirus.

Rather than recommending 10 days, or seven days for someone with a negative test, the Oregon Health Authority has upped the quarantine period to 14 days.

The guidance does not apply to people who are fully vaccinated, but for others, the state said, “a 14-day quarantine is the safest option to prevent the spread of COVID-19 to others.”

Oregon, meanwhile, hasn’t averaged more than 800 cases a day since Jan. 21, and active hospitalizations haven’t been this high since Jan. 25. The state’s test positivity rate from the past week is equally troubling, at 6.1%, equaling levels from that same period in January.

Oregon is one of only 14 states seeing increasing cases, according to a database by The New York Times, leading the country in its growth rate over the past two weeks. Overall, Oregon during that span is tied for 17th in cases per capita.

Vaccines: Oregon reported 27,077 newly administered doses, which includes 18,911 Sunday and the remainder from previous days.

Where the new cases are by county: Baker (2), Benton (2), Clackamas (94), Clatsop (4), Columbia (7), Coos (5), Crook (3), Deschutes (43), Douglas (4), Grant (4), Hood River (1), Jackson (55), Jefferson (2), Josephine (8), Lane (40), Lincoln (2), Linn (16), Marion (81), Multnomah (164), Polk (10), Tillamook (5), Union (1), Wasco (3), Washington (66) and Yamhill (8).

Who died: Oregon’s 2,486th COVID-19 death is an 80-year-old Douglas County woman who tested positive April 23 and died April 24 at Mercy Medical Center. State officials are confirming if she had underlying medical conditions.

Hospitalizations: 319 people with confirmed cases of COVID-19 are hospitalized, up 28 from Sunday. That includes 77 people in intensive care, up 11 from Sunday.

Since it began: Oregon has reported 181,321 confirmed or presumed infections and 2,486 deaths, among the lowest per capita numbers in the nation. To date, the state has reported 2,826,206 vaccine doses administered, fully vaccinating 1,175,540 people and partially vaccinating 563,000 people.

To see more data and trends, visit https://projects.oregonlive.com/coronavirus/

— Brad Schmidt; [email protected]; 503-294-7628; @_brad_schmidt