The Columbia Press
February 5, 2021
3
County coronavirus infections reach 751
The Columbia Press
Clatsop
County
Public
Health Department reported
13 new cases of coronavirus in
the past week ending Wednes-
day. Two of them have been
hospitalized.
The new cases bring the
county’s total to 751 since the
pandemic began; there have
been 18 hospitalizations and
five deaths. The rest are recu-
perating at home or have re-
covered.
Statewide, there had been
144,605 as of Wednesday with
1,991 deaths.
Free weekly tests
Oregon Health and Science
University is offering free
COVID-19 tests in Astoria.
OHSU’s Community Out-
reach Testing program will
set up from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
every Monday at the Clatsop
County Household Hazardous
Waste facility, 1780 Williams-
port Road.
Testing will be open to peo-
ple 2 months and older.
Register online at ohsu.edu/
COVIDVans or call 503-494-
4911.
The county Public Health
Department offers tests there
on Tuesdays and Fridays.
As of Wednesday, 2,626
Clatsop County residents had
been fully vaccinated or had
received the first of two doses.
Statewide, 471,966 people had
received first or both doses.
Insurance companies
The state now requires
health benefit plans to cover
the costs of COVID-19 vacci-
nation, following an order by
state Public Health Director
Rachael Banks.
The Jan. 27 determination
cites Oregon Revised Statute
743A.264 in mandating that
private health plans operat-
ing in Oregon not charge pa-
tients for most costs related
to providing the vaccine. That
includes the cost of all doses
and associated supplies, and
expenses for administering
the shot, such as those related
to staff time.
The Oregon Health Plan
and Medicare programs do
not charge patients for these
costs.
“We are in the midst of a dev-
astating pandemic that has
affected more than 142,000
people in Oregon and claimed
almost 2,000 lives,” Banks
said. “There should be no fi-
nancial barrier to getting the
vaccine, whether it’s a copay
or administrative fee.”
To learn more, contact your
insurance company, Oregon
Health Authority at 800-273-
0557, or Medicare at 800-
633-4227.
Restaurant fined
A Springfield restaurant was
fined more than $9,000 for
failing to protect its workers
and customers from corona-
virus.
Along Came Trudy willfully
continued to expose workers
to the virus despite a pub-
lic health order limiting the
capacity for indoor dining
to zero in an “extreme risk”
county.
The fine was the result of
an inspection launched in re-
sponse to multiple complaints
about the eatery. An inspec-
tion was completed and the
citation was issued despite
attempts to thwart the pro-
cess, including armed people
standing outside the business
who threatened regulatory
agencies and their staff mem-
bers.
In allowing indoor dining,
the restaurant chose to disre-
gard capacity limitations im-
posed by the Oregon Health
Authority and failed to ensure
customers inside the estab-
lishment wore a mask when
not eating.
Owner Trudy Logan told
authorities she was aware of
the prohibition, but willingly
chose to continue.
Election: Special district seats to open countywide
Continued from Page 1
held by James Campbell in
Position 1, Dirk Rohne in Po-
sition 2, and Frank Spence in
Position 5.
The Clatsop Community
College Board of Directors
will have four of the seven
seats open for election. They
are the seats held by Robert
Duehmig, Sara Meyer, Rose-
mary Baker-Monaghan, and
Dave Zunkel.
Sunset Empire Transpor-
tation District’s Board of Di-
rectors will have four open
slots – those held by Diana
Nino, Rebecca Read, Charles
Withers, and Pamela Alegria.
The Astoria School Board
will have three open posi-
tions, those held by Grace
Laman, Jeanette Sampson,
and Jenna Rickenbach.
To run for public office,
visit the Clatsop County
Elections website and fill out
a candidate filing form. It
must be returned by 5 p.m.
March 18.
Other open positions in-
clude:
Clatsop Care Center Health
District, four positions
Clatsop County Rural Law
Enforcement, two positions
Gearhart Rural Fire Protec-
tion District, four positions
Knappa School District,
three positions
Miles Crossing Sanitary
Sewer District, three posi-
tions
Seaside School District,
four positions
Shoreline Sanitary District,
two positions
Union Health District, four
positions
Warrenton Rural Fire Pro-
tection District, three posi-
tions
Youngs River Lewis & Clark
Water District, three seats
Crater Lake
Two lakes named state resources
Crater Lake in Southern Or-
egon and Waldo Lake in the
Willamette National Forest
have been named Outstand-
ing Resource Waters by the
state Environmental Quality
Commission.
The commission, which
oversees the Department of
Environmental Quality, vot-
ed 4-0 on Jan. 21 to approve
the designation, which gives
them additional state protec-
tions.
It’s only the second time the
commission has granted the
special status to waters in Or-
egon. The remote North Fork
Smith River in Southwest
Oregon received the designa-
tion in 2017.
Discharge into the lakes is
prohibited, except for short-
term stormwater permits for
construction. Existing recre-
ation and tourism activities
will continue at both lakes.
While most lakes in the
United States have visibility
of less than 30 feet, Waldo
Lake and Crater Lake have
an average visibility of more
than 100 feet.
Additionally, both lakes
are treasured recreation and
tourism hotspots.