WednesdAy • April 14, 2021 • Serving Central Oregon since 1903 • $1.50
SPORTS PULLOUT, A5-8
State halts use of vaccine
from Johnson & Johnson
Health officials await
‘green light’ before
resuming distribution
By GARy A. WARneR
Oregon Capital Bureau
Oregon has paused using
the Johnson & Johnson one-
shot COVID-19 vaccine even
though none of six newly re-
ported severe reactions to the
vaccine occurred in the state,
health officials said Tuesday.
The U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention urged
states to temporarily stop using
the vaccine given to 6.8 million
people after six women who
received the vaccine became
seriously ill and one died.
“This appears to be ex-
tremely rare,” Dr. Paul Cieslak,
Oregon Health Authority’s
medical director for acute and
communicable disease and im-
munizations, said during an af-
ternoon press call.
The CDC said the six
women were aged 18 to 48.
They became ill from one to
three weeks after their vaccina-
tion. The cause appeared to be
a rare blood clot disorder.
The state has given about
82,000 Johnson & Johnson
shots, a tiny fraction of the
2.3 million vaccine doses
administered since Decem-
ber. OHA said about 212,000
doses are on hand in 225 lo-
cations around the state and
can be kept in regular refrig-
eration units for later use
when federal officials lift the
advisory.
COVID-19 could get worse until
it gets better in Central Oregon
By sUZAnne ROIG
The Bulletin
Cases of COVID-19 could
continue to climb over the
next couples of weeks, but
warmer weather, and more
vaccinations, could thwart
the spread.
As COVID-19 weariness
weighs on everyone, with
young people returning to
sports and social activities
and bars and restaurants
opening up, more people
are lowering their guard,
health officials say. But the
risk could be outweighed
if more people were vac-
cinated. Starting Monday,
anyone 16 and older in Cen-
tral Oregon can sign up for
a vaccine.
“It’s very frustrating to
have a conversation like this
because it’s such a fluid and
unknown environment right
now,” said Michael Johnson,
St. Charles Health System
senior data scientist. “Every
model I’ve looked at shows
it getting worse before it gets
better. But we don’t know the
magnitude.”
In the past two weeks,
Deschutes County has seen
daily case counts rise. On
Tuesday, 34 new positive
cases of COVID-19 were re-
ported in the county three
days after officials raised
the risk level from moder-
ate to high, which limits the
amount of people who can
gather inside and outside.
See COVId-19 / A4
See Vaccine / A4
Construction continues Monday on new apartments at sW shevlin Hixon drive and sW Bradbury Way near McKay Park.
Oregon
Legislature
lurches into
second half
of session
Dean Guernsey/The Bulletin
Lawmakers deal with
slowdowns, shutdowns
and death threats
By GARy A. WARneR
Oregon Capital Bureau
By BRennA VIsseR • The Bulletin
A new apartment building is coming to fruition near McKay
Park in Bend.
The building, which sits between the Colorado Avenue
bridge and the Bend Park & Recreation District’s Pavilion, will
eventually be home to 141 apartments. The building will be called
The Eddy Apartments, according to the developer’s website.
The project received significant backlash from neighbors,
Developer scaled back design from four stories
who lined nearby sidewalks to protest the idea of a four-story
building, and from community members.
See Apartments / A12
OSU-Cascades chief could take lead in Corvallis
Board of Trustees considers Johnson as
interim president after Alexander resigned
By JACKsOn HOGAn
The Bulletin
Becky Johnson, the leader
of Oregon State University-
Cascades, could become the
temporary leader of the entire
Oregon State University sys-
tem.
The OSU board of trustees
is considering hiring John-
TODAY’S
WEATHER
son, the vice president of
OSU-Cascades, to be OSU’s
interim president. The board
will vote on this promotion
during its public meeting Fri-
day from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
“Dr. Johnson … is most
qualified to guide and help ad-
vance the priorities and mo-
mentum of the university,”
Sunny
High 53, Low 30
Page A12
INDEX
wrote board Chair Rani Borkar
in a letter sent Tuesday to the
OSU community. “Under her
leadership, OSU-Cascades is
known as one of the most in-
novative, new residential uni-
versity campuses in the nation.”
Borkar could not be
reached for comment Tuesday
afternoon.
If Johnson is chosen, she
would resign as OSU-Cas-
cades’ vice president and begin
a one-year term as interim
Business
Classifieds
Comics
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Dear Abby
Editorial
Horoscope
A7
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A7
Corvallis. Provost
president of OSU on
and Executive Vice
May 1, according to
President Ed Feser
university spokes-
is serving as acting
person Steve Clark.
president until an in-
Johnson would fill
terim is chosen.
the post that opened
Borkar picked
when F. King Alexan-
Johnson after a two-
der resigned March
Johnson
week period of chat-
23 after reports
showed he mishandled sexual ting with OSU students, fac-
ulty, staff and alumni from
misconduct cases during his
both the Bend and Corvallis
time as the president of Lou-
isiana State University, where
campuses, Clark said.
he worked before coming to
See OsU / A4
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Lottery
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Obituaries
Puzzles
Sports
A4
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See Legislature / A12
The Bulletin
An Independent Newspaper
We use
recycled
newsprint
Vol. 117, No. 329, 14 pages, 1 section
DAILY
APARTMENTS
TAKE SHAPE
AFTER DISPUTE
Disease, dysfunction and
deadlines are challenging the
Oregon Legislature as it starts
the second half of the 2021 ses-
sion.
Friday was the 80th day of
the 160 days the Oregon Con-
stitution allows lawmakers to
meet this year. The session has
been marked so far by shut-
downs and slowdowns.
Senate Republicans walked
out for the third session in a
row, but just for a day to protest
Democrat’s lock on the agenda.
But some GOP senators
would receive death threats
from gun control opponents
for not walking out on a bill to
bar concealed weapons in state
buildings.
One email had a subject line
“SELLOUT” and a chilling
one-line message: “You should
be shot.”
Oregon State Police are in-
vestigating the threats.
All the turmoil has played
out against the roller-coaster
ride of falling, then rising
COVID-19 numbers.
As of Monday, the House
had passed 115 bills since gav-
eling to order Jan. 19. It cur-
rently has a backup of 122 bills
scheduled for a final vote.
“The tension has started
earlier,” House Speaker Tina
Kotek said last week. “I think
it is really hard to tell what is
happening.”
Committees in both cham-
bers were scurrying to slide un-
der the Tuesday night deadline
to have legislation approved
by committees and sent to the
floor of the originating cham-
ber (House or Senate). Other-
wise, the mass majority die.
“A number of those bills at
the end of the day will not be
ready for deadline,” Kotek said.
“Things are pretty fluid.”
What survives will still have a
daunting road to the governor’s
desk due to a basic partisan split
on the direction of the session.
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