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Posted inCoronavirus

Oregon to End Healthcare Mask Requirement April 3

The announcement comes as the US moves to end the COVID-19 emergency declaration.
Avatar photo Abe Asher

The Oregon Health Authority announced Friday morning that it will lift the state’s mask requirement for healthcare settings on April 3, ending one of the final remaining COVID-19-related public health measures still in place. According to OHA state epidemiologist Dean Sidelinger, the decision to end the mask requirement comes as the rate of circulation of […]

Posted inCoronavirus

Oregon’s Possible Removal of COVID Precautions Prompts Mixed Reactions

Despite the continued spread of COVID, health officials say rolling back pandemic safety measures is necessary to preserve public trust in emergency situations.
Avatar photo Abe Asher

At a press conference in early February, Dean Sidelinger, state epidemiologist for the Oregon Health Authority (OHA), had an announcement: if the state’s respiratory illness trends continue to improve, it will likely lift its mask mandate for healthcare settings.   The lifting of the mandate for healthcare settings would be another milestone in the state’s […]

Posted inCoronavirus

Oregon Health Officials Optimistic about the Decline of COVID, Flu, and RSV

Despite the decline in respiratory illnesses, hospitals remain at or near capacity.
Avatar photo Abe Asher

State health officials are optimistic that a recent decrease in respiratory cases and hospitalizations will continue throughout the spring and could allow the state to remove its masking requirement in healthcare settings. Dean Sidelinger, state epidemiologist for the Oregon Health Authority (OHA), said at a press briefing Thursday that the state is seeing “incredibly good” […]

Posted inCoronavirus

Oregonians 5 and Older Eligible for Latest COVID-19 Booster Shots

Youth can start receiving bivalent boosters as early as Thursday.
Avatar photo Isabella Garcia

The latest COVID-19 vaccine booster shots are now available for children between 5 and 11 years old in Oregon, Oregon Health Authority (OHA) officials announced in a press conference Thursday. The agency encouraged parents and guardians to call their child’s doctor or pharmacy to schedule an appointment to receive the shot. “This is a time […]

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Updated COVID-19 Booster Shots are Available in Oregon—Here’s Where You Can Get One

Avatar photo Isabella Garcia

Omicron-specific COVID-19 vaccine booster shots are now available in Oregon for anyone ages 12 and up. Health officials believe the updated boosters will be a critical tool to mitigate an anticipated surge of infections in fall and winter.  “With fall and winter approaching with circulation of COVID-19 anticipated to increase, when most of us will […]

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Multnomah County COVID Contact Tracing Could Not Keep Up With Pandemic Surges, Audit Finds

The county can learn from the tracing team’s challenges to better prepare for future emergencies, report says.
Avatar photo Isabella Garcia

Even on their most accomplished days, Multnomah County COVID-19 tracers only contacted 80 percent of people who reported positive tests during the pandemic, according to a report by the Multnomah County Auditor’s Office released Wednesday. Amid the pandemic’s largest surges, only 10 percent of people who reported positive tests were contacted by tracers. While state […]

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Oregon Approves COVID-19 Vaccines for Children 5 and Under

Avatar photo Isabella Garcia

Children getting vaccinated at a Portland Public Schools pop up clinic. Portland Public Schools State health officials have approved pediatric COVID-19 vaccines for children as young as 6 months old in Oregon. In a Friday press conference, officials called the vaccine approval for 230,000 of Oregon’s youngest residents a turning point in the pandemic. “Many […]

Posted inNews

State and County Health Officials Vary on Mask Recommendations Amid Rising COVID Cases

Avatar photo Isabella Garcia

Students at Franklin High School. Portland Public Schools COVID-19 cases have doubled in Oregon over the past month, prompting differing COVID safety recommendations from state and county health officials. While the true number of COVID cases in the region is obscured by the increased availability of at-home tests that aren’t reported to the Oregon Health […]

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Oregon Attorney General Sues Private Covid Testing Company

Avatar photo Isabella Garcia

One of the Center for Covid Control’s testing locations in Portland. Isabella Garcia Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum is suing the Center for Covid Control, a private COVID-19 testing company that operated approximately 300 testing locations throughout the US, three of which were in the Portland area. Rosenblum is accusing the company of deceptive marketing […]

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As Oregon’s Mask Mandate Lifts, Health Officials Detail a Path Forward

Avatar photo Isabella Garcia

Masks will become optional in most places in Oregon starting March 12. DuKai photographer / Getty Images With Oregon hours away from lifting its indoor mask requirement, Oregon health leaders debuted the state’s new equity-focused COVID-19 recovery plan Friday. The plan, which the state calls Resilience in Support of Equity (RISE), aims to address systemic […]

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