16
Wednesday, November 18, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
CANCELED: COVID
is surging across
Oregon and locally
Two-week ‘freeze’
calls for restrictions
Continued from page 1
as Governor Kate Brown
on Friday, November 13,
announced a <two-week
freeze= enacting renewed
restrictions focused on limit-
ing the spread of the corona-
virus (see sidebar for list of
restrictions).
Freeze measures will be
in place from November 18
through December 2 through
the entire state. Some <hot
spot= counties, such as
Multnomah County, will be
under the freeze for longer
periods.
<Maybe we thought the
fight was over, but it9s not,=
said Dr. Dean Sidelinger,
the state epidemiologist, at
Friday9s press conference.
<This is likely the most dan-
gerous time in Oregon.=
According to the
Associated Press, 8The per-
cent of people testing posi-
tive was nearly 12 percent
statewide, more than double
what it was in the summer,
according to Oregon Health
Authority data.=
The most recent data
shows that Sisters has seen 51
confirmed cases (cumulative),
after holding at 35 for many
weeks. Deschutes County is
facing the sharpest increase
in cases since the beginning
of the pandemic, according
to Deschutes County Health
Services Director Dr. George
Conway, who addressed
the Bend City Council last
Thursday.
<I think we all regard this
as alarming,= Conway said.
As of last Friday, St.
Charles Health System
reported 14 COVID-19
Governor Kate Brown
laid out a list of tightened
restrictions aimed at blunt-
ing a surge in COVID-19
cases in a press confer-
ence on Friday, November
13. Restrictions set to run
from November 18 through
December 2 include:
" Limiting restaurants
and bars to take-out service
only.
" Closing gyms and other
indoor recreational facilities,
museums, and indoor enter-
tainment (like theaters).
" Closing outdoor rec-
reational facilities, zoos,
gardens and entertainment
venues. City parks and
patients, three of them in the
ICU with two on a ventilator.
Last week, St. Charles
CEO Joe Sluka stated that, <It
appears we have officially hit
a third wave. But unlike the
last two, we never reset back
to zero hospitalized patients.
Our number of inpatients has
held steady in recent weeks
until last Friday (November
6) when it essentially doubled
overnight.=
Sluka expressed concern
that a potential spike associ-
ated with holiday gatherings
could push the limits of the
hospital9s capacity.
Dr. Joe Bachtold of St.
Charles Health System told
The Nugget that, <We9re see-
ing that the lion9s share of
new cases are from people
getting together in small
groups 4 10 or less.=
He said that, like other
areas in the country, folks
in Sisters are experiencing
<COVID-fatigue.=
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playgrounds remain open.
" Requiring all businesses
to mandate that employees
work from home when pos-
sible, and to close offices to
the public.
" Limiting grocery and
retail stores to 75 percent
capacity and encouraging
curbside pick-up service.
" Prohibiting visits at
nursing homes and other
long-term care facilities.
" Limiting social get-
togethers, whether indoors
or out, to no more than six
people from two households.
" Limiting worship ser-
vices to 25 people indoors or
50 people when outdoors.
<People are letting their
guard down,= he said. <We9re
learning to live with COVID,
but it doesn9t mean we can
change our behavior. That9s
going to be really important.
We9re all tired of it. I get it.=
Dr. Bachtold noted that
concerns over COVID-19
have led to an increase in doc-
tor visits from people exhibit-
ing symptoms that turn out to
be regular seasonal illness.
<We9re mostly seeing
people with early cold symp-
toms 4 the seasonal cold,=
he said. <The lion9s share of
those people are negative
(when tested for COVID-19).
They are calling to be evalu-
ated when otherwise they
wouldn9t have. If it was last
year, they would not have
darkened our door.=
But it is 2020 and Sisters
continues to live in the
shadow of a global pandemic
that does not appear to be
poised to ease any time soon.
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