Oregon Reports No New COVID Deaths Two Days in a Row

Stay at Home order pays off for Oregonians

(SALEM, Ore.) - The state of Oregon’s death toll from COVID-19 is unchanged from yesterday and remains at 109, the Oregon Health Authority reported this morning.

There are 45 new cases of COVID-19 in Oregon as of 8 a.m. today, bringing the current state total of cases to 2,680.

Friday, Governor Brown signed executive order No.20-24 which extends the original March 8th declaration through July 6th.

The new order extends the state of emergency for 60 days, but allows Brown to terminate it earlier than that if deemed appropriate, as she did for non-urgent medical procedures.

Governor Brown issued the original order when Oregon had 14 positive cases of the coronavirus. Since then, the state has maintained very low levels of the contagion spreading through communities at the rate of speed many states are dealing with.

The May 1 declaration also allows the Governor to continue the current "Stay Home, Save Lives" executive order, and the moratorium on residential/commercial evictions.

"As the Governor made clear [Friday], our efforts to move forward with safely reopening Oregon will be gradual, incremental, and based on science and data," said a spokesperson with the Governor's office in a statement.

"Executive Order 20-24 allows that process of reopening Oregon safely and carefully to continue."

The new COVID-19 cases reported today are in the following counties: Clackamas (1), Coos (4), Hood River (2), Josephine (1), Malheur (1), Marion (21), Multnomah (5), Umatilla (3), Washington (7).

ORS 401.651 to 401.670, ORS 433.443, and ORS 431A.015
issued on March 8th, 2020:

1. The Oregon Health Authority and the state Public Health Director shall take all actions necessary and authorized under ORS 401.651 to 401.670, ORS 433.443, and ORS 431A.015 to respond to, control, mitigate, and recover from the emergency, including but not limited to:
   (a) Deploying emergency volunteer health care professionals under ORS 401.661;
   (b) Designating emergency health care centers under ORS 401.657;
   (c) After consultation with appropriate medical experts, creating and requiring the use of diagnostic and treatment guidelines and providing notice of those guidelines to health care providers, institutions and facilities;
   (d) Issuing guidelines for private businesses regarding appropriate work restrictions, if necessary.
   
2. If needed, I will request assistance through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact under ORS 402.105 and the Pacific Northwest Management Assistance Arrangement under ORS 402.250.
3. The Office of Emergency Management shall, in consultation with the Director of the Oregon Health Authority and state Public Health Director, if necessary, take any action authorized under ORS 433.441. All agencies identified as part of the Governor's Coronavirus Response Team are directed to provide liaisons for the State Emergency Coordination Center. All state government agencies shall utilize and employ state personnel, equipment, and facilities for any and all activities as requested and coordinated by the Oregon Office of Emergency Management. All citizens are to heed the advice of emergency officials with regard to this outbreak in order to protect their health and safety.
4. As necessary to respond to the emergency, I authorize all executive agencies of state government to take, upon further direction from me or my office, any actions authorized under the provisions set forth in ORS 401.168 through 401.192.
5. State agencies shall develop and​ implement procedures, including waiving rules or adopting temporary rules within the agency's authority, consistent with recommendations from the state Public Health Director, designed to prevent or alleviate the public health threat.
6. This declaration serves as a public health emergency for purposes of ORS 653.616, which permits employees to use sick time as specified in ORS 653.616(6).
7. Persons who believe that they have been subjected to excessive prices for essential consumer goods associated with the coronavirus outbreak are encouraged to report that conduct to the Oregon Department of Justice Consumer Protection hotline, at 1-877-877-9392.

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.

Source(s): Oregon Governor's office; Oregon Health Authority