By GARY A. WARNER/Oregon Capital Bureau
Oregon has entered its sixth wave of COVID-19 infections as the world marks the two-year anniversary of the pandemic Friday.
Thursday’s report by the Oregon Health Authority recorded 2,948 new cases and 15 deaths. Hospitalizations for COVID-19 climbed to 440 people, up 21 from Wednesday. Oregon has recorded 421,263 infections and 5,655 deaths from COVID-19, which was first reported in China two years ago Friday. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 488,000 new cases nationwide, a new record. The World Health Organization said new infections were a “tsunami” sweeping the globe.
The spike is being driven by the high-speed spread of the omicron variant, paired with a stubbornly slow decline of the delta variant that peaked in September. Omicron now accounts for a majority of new cases in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Cases are expected to continue to rise in Oregon, with Thursday’s positive test rate at 15%, which is three times the standard that OHA says is a manageable level of spread.
The health authority said Thursday it had ordered 12 million at-home antigen rapid test kits, which can show results in 15 minutes. Local public health agencies and partner organizations will distribute the tests free of charge. The first kits should arrive in Oregon next week.
“Oregon learned during the Delta surge that we must be prepared for the unpredictable — we knew we had to be ready for future variants so we could continue to protect the most vulnerable in our communities while keeping our schools, businesses and communities open,” Gov. Kate Brown said in a statement.
Pharmacies around the state have reported selling all available kits and mail orders are backlogged into next month.
Scientists studying the omicron strain say it is the most contagious version of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic. While early reports show individual cases are less likely to result in hospitalization or death, the sheer number of new cases will swamp hospitals and emergency responders.
Omicron is more likely to cause “breakthrough” cases in vaccinated people, the CDC has reported. But people who have received a booster shot to go along with earlier vaccination have significantly lower chances of experiencing severe illness or death.
Oregon Health & Science University has projected that the omicron spike will peak in Oregon around Feb. 9. The OHSU forecast last week lowered the peak number of hospitalizations in Oregon from 3,000 to about 1,200, near the level seen when delta peaked in early September. A new forecast expected Thursday has now been delayed until Friday, OHSU officials said.
Thursday’s report said the 7-day daily average of new cases in Oregon rose to 1,532.
Deschutes County continues to be the state’s leading COVID-19 hot spot, with the top infection rate of any county when adjusted for population and a weekly average of 565.4 cases per 100,000 residents.