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Oregon Health Authority’s coronavirus report for Wednesday, Sept. 16: weekly case numbers decline, positive rate rises

Oregon reports 195 new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases, 2 new deaths

Today’s Weekly Report showed that new cases in Oregon have continued to decline as 1,294 cases were recorded from Sept. 7-13 —down 12% from last week’s tally of 1,477. In that same period, the number of Oregonians newly tested declined 35%, to 17,365, and the percentage of tests that were positive rose from 4.3% to 5.6%. This decline in the number of Oregonians tested occurred during the context of numerous active wildfires. OHA is closely monitoring this situation.

Twenty-nine Oregonians were reported to have died last week in association with COVID-19, compared to 23 last week. Eighty-three Oregonians were hospitalized; and with 47 in the previous week, the reported number of Oregonians hospitalized with COVID-19 is the lowest for any two-week period since mid-June.

As in past weeks of declining case counts, OHA reminds Oregonians that it remains very important to continue to wear face coverings, practice physical distancing and avoid gatherings to sustain the progress the state has made.

PORTLAND — COVID-19 has claimed two more lives in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 521, the Oregon Health Authority reported at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday.

Oregon Health Authority reported 195 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19 as of 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, bringing the state total to 29,850.

The new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases reported today are in the following counties: Benton (1), Clackamas (10), Clatsop (2), Coos (2), Deschutes (4), Douglas (2), Hood River (1), Jackson (15), Jefferson (5), Klamath (14), Lane (15), Linn (1), Malheur (17), Marion (23), Multnomah (32), Polk (3), Umatilla (2), Union (1), Wallowa (6), Wasco (2), Washington (33) and Yamhill (4).

Oregon’s 520th COVID-19 death is a 70-year-old man in Washington County who tested positive on July 9 and died on Sept. 8 at OHSU. He did not have underlying conditions.

Oregon’s 521st COVID-19 death is a 79-year-old man in Multnomah County who tested positive on Aug. 4 and died on Sept. 10 at his residence. He had underlying conditions.

OHA announces new COVID-19 wastewater monitoring project

OHA today announced it had launched a statewide COVID-19 wastewater monitoring project to study the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in more than 40 small- to medium-sized communities around the state. The project, which will include weekly wastewater testing over the next 30 months, will enable epidemiologists to better understand the circulation of COVID-19 in some of Oregon’s communities. It will serve as an “early warning” system to tell if COVID-19 is spreading silently in communities.

“This program holds promise to help us monitor COVID-19 in our communities,” said Melissa Sutton MD, MPH, Medical Director for Respiratory Viral Pathogens at OHA and a principal investigator for the wastewater study. “We look forward to our partnership with local communities and researchers. Together we hope to better understand the spread of COVID-19 in Oregon.”

Much of the work will be carried out by Oregon State University researchers, along with local partners. Funding for this program comes from the CDC.

Stay informed about COVID-19:

Oregon response: The Oregon Health Authority and Oregon Office of Emergency Management lead the state response.

United States response: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention leads the U.S. response.

Global response: The World Health Organization guides the global response.