A2 THE BULLETIN • SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2021
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DESCHUTES COUNTY
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PHONE HOURS
6 a.m.-noon Tuesday-Friday
7 a.m.-noon Saturday-Sunday
and holidays
Deschutes County cases: 5,822 (11 new cases)
Deschutes County deaths: 58 (zero new deaths)
LOCAL
VACCINATIONS
Crook County cases: 760 (zero new cases)
Crook County deaths: 18 (zero new deaths)
23,238
Jefferson County cases: 1,917 (5 new cases)
Jefferson County deaths: 27 (zero new deaths)
Number of vaccinations
given by St. Charles
Health System
What is COVID-19? It’s an infection caused by a new
coronavirus. Symptoms include fever, coughing and
shortness of breath. This virus can be fatal.
7 ways to help limit its spread: 1. Wash hands often
with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. 2. Avoid
touching your face. 3. Avoid close contact with sick
people. 4. Stay home. 5. In public, stay 6 feet from others
and wear a mask. 6. Cough into your elbow. 7. Clean and
disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
8 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Fri.
ONLINE
108 new cases
120
(Jan. 1)
90
new
cases
110
*No data
available on
Jan. 31
due to state
computer
maintenence
(Nov. 27)
90
70
50
(Nov. 14)
7-day
average
28 new cases
(July 16)
40
31 new cases
(Oct. 31)
30
16 new cases
(Sept. 19)
20
(May 20)
1st case
100
80
47 new cases
9 new cases
www.bendbulletin.com
130
(Dec. 4)
60
COVID-19 patients hospitalized
at St. Charles Bend on Friday: 11 (2 in ICU).
541-382-1811
BULLETIN
GRAPHIC
129 new cases
COVID-19 data for Friday, Feb. 19:
Oregon cases: 152,190 (492 new cases)
Oregon deaths: 2,149 (zero new deaths)
GENERAL
INFORMATION
SOURCES: OREGON HEALTH AUTHORITY,
DESCHUTES COUNTY HEALTH SERVICES
New COVID-19 cases per day
10
(March 11)
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Dramatic drop in cases reported
BY GARY A. WARNER
Oregon Capital Bureau
Fewer infections and more
vaccine is giving Oregon
a boost in its fight against
COVID-19, Gov. Kate Brown
said Friday.
“Holy smokes, it’s been quite
a week,” Brown said during a
press conference.
Brown was remarking on
winter storms that cut off en-
ergy to large swaths of Oregon,
while also delaying COVID-19
vaccine shipments and cancel-
ing inoculation events.
Oregon Health Authority
Director Pat Allen said se-
vere winter storms across the
country delayed a shipment
of 72,000 doses to the state.
The late-arriving doses will be
added on to the total expected
to arrive next week.
Brown’s press conference
came as the United States is
on pace to pass 500,000 deaths
from COVID-19 next week.
Worldwide, there have been
just under 2.45 million deaths.
Besides the storms and anni-
versary, Brown and health of-
ficials had mostly upbeat news
about the current COVID-19
situation in the state.
A sharp rise in cases over the
winter holidays that threatened
to overwhelm the state’s hos-
pital system has dramatically
abated, with recent daily case
totals at lows not seen since
October.
Oregon’s number of daily
new cases has fallen 66% since
Jan. 1. On Friday, OHA re-
ABIGAIL DOLLINS/Statesman-Journal via AP, pool, file
Gov. Kate Brown visits with National Guard members at the Marion County and Salem Health COVID-19 vac-
cination clinic Jan. 13 at the Oregon State Fairgrounds in Salem.
ported 492 new cases, bringing
the pandemic total to 152,190
cases. There have been 2,149
deaths in the state.
Looking ahead, Oregon has
a positive test rate of 3.4%, a
number that if maintained will
lead to a steady decline in in-
fections.
The New York Times re-
ported Friday that Oregon’s
daily infection rate of 9 cases
per 100,000 people ranked it
49th out of 50 states for spread
of the virus. Only Hawaii is
lower.
Brown said the infection
rates in much of Oregon would
mean a growing number of
schools will be able to reopen
to in-person or hybrid learn-
ing.
Currently 19 counties meet
the advisory metrics for teach-
ing in classrooms.
About 130,000 students —
20% of the state total — are
spending at least part of the
day at school.
“That’s double last week,”
Brown said. “Our kids will
benefit greatly from these ef-
forts.”
Brown made the controver-
sial decision to give priority for
vaccinations to 150,000 teach-
ers, school staff and day care
workers ahead of the 675,000
residents who are over 65 and
do not live in nursing homes.
The education group was el-
igible for inoculations Jan. 25,
two weeks before a vaccina-
tion of older Oregonians began
Feb. 8. The first group included
only those over age 80. Eligi-
bility then dropped five years
of age each week until every-
one over 65 could sign-up on
March 1.
Local officials around the
state have been inundated with
complaints from seniors and
their families trying to navi-
gate systems to schedule the
first shot. When they can get
through, appointments times
are already booked solid for
weeks.
The senior groups must
share the limited overall supply
of vaccine doses with health
care workers and educators
who haven’t finished their
shots.
“There is going to be a little
bit of a traffic jam,” Allen said.
Oregon is currently giving
about 14,000 shots per day, and
hopes to steadily increase the
number.
Since December, about 12%
of Oregonians have received
shots — more than 755,000
doses when counting both the
first and second shots in the
vaccine regime.
More than 233,000 people
have received both shots —
about 5% of the population.
Oregon’s inoculation num-
bers put it at, or just ahead of
the national average in both
counts.
Allen said the only thing
keeping Oregon from vaccinat-
ing more people is vaccine. De-
mand from around the coun-
try is outstripping supply. The
staff needed to give the shots is
waiting.
“Please be patient, the vac-
cines are limited,” Allen said.
Brown said a final decision
on who would be in the next
priority group had not been fi-
nalized.
There was also no date as yet
for when eligibility will reopen
following the last age-based
group on March 1.
gwarner@eomediagroup.com
ý
LOCAL BRIEFING
Grants available
for Jefferson County
small businesses
NeighborImpact, a non-
profit service organization
in Central Oregon, is pro-
viding grants to small busi-
nesses in Jefferson County that
have been impacted by the
COVID-19 pandemic.
The organization was given
$135,000 from the city of Ma-
dras, which was awarded the
federal funds through the Ore-
gon Community Development
Block Grant program. About
$22,000 is still available for in-
terested businesses.
Grants have ranged from
$2,500 to $20,000, depending
on the number of jobs cre-
ated and retained through the
support, according to Neigh-
borImpact.
The goal of the program is to
reduce job loss from the pan-
demic.
Eligible applicants must
demonstrate the ability to re-
tain their employees.
Grant applications are avail-
able online at www.neigh-
borimpact.org/get-help/sb-
ma-grant-program/.
Museum opening new
exhibit on space rocks
Desert Museum is launch-
ing its new temporary exhibit,
“Cosmic Microscapes: Seeing
Into Rocks from Oregon &
Space,” according to a museum
press release. Not only will the
exhibit showcase actual lunar
and Martian rocks, but there
will also be art pieces showing
the correlations between aster-
oids and cooled lava from the
caldera in our backyard.
The exhibit will be displayed
through Sunday, July 18, the
release stated.
Volcanic rocks from Lava
Butte and asteroids from the
moon and Mars are quite sim-
ilar, and High Desert Museum
visitors will get to see those
similarities up close starting
March 6.
On that Saturday, the High
— Bulletin staff reports
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Love God,
COVID-19 | Multnomah County jail
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ý
Lottery results can now be found on
the second page of Sports.
Love Your Neighbor,
Love Yourself
Judge limits jail booking criteria
to help control virus outbreak
JAIMIE DING
The Oregonian
Multnomah County officials
are working to reduce jail popu-
lations after a recent COVID-19
outbreak by limiting new ar-
rests, releasing some inmates
early and delaying sentences.
The outbreak has infected
more than 140 inmates at the
Multnomah County Inverness
Jail since the beginning of the
year, leading to an outcry from
inmates and public defenders.
The county reduced the
overall population at the
downtown Multnomah
County Detention Center and
the Northeast Portland Inver-
ness Jail by 30% at the start of
the pandemic, but inmates and
staff still reported a crowded
environment that did not allow
for adequate social distancing.
An order signed Feb. 11 al-
lows police officers to issue a
citation in place of an arrest for
all misdemeanors, excluding
ones with mandatory arrest re-
quirements. The order, signed
by Presiding Judge Stephen
K. Bushong of Multnomah
County Circuit Court, took
effect immediately and will re-
main until March 15.
The order excludes so-called
“person” misdemeanors that in-
clude crimes committed against
another person, such as stalking,
driving under the influence of
intoxicants, fourth-degree as-
sault and menacing.
Sheriff Mike Reese sent out
a special order to deputies and
partnering agencies reinforcing
the court guidelines.
According to the order, offi-
cers will not book anyone into
jail unless they are charged
with an offense in a list of cer-
tain felonies and misdemean-
ors that are crimes committed
against other people, excluding
charges like car theft.
Worship online @
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Meal schedule @
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541.480.8130
louie@louiehoffman.com
“Catch My Drift”
Louie Hoffman, CCIM
Principal Broker, Licensed in Oregon
SRES, Senior Real Estate Specialist
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