New COVID-19 infections dropping in Wasco, Hood River Counties

“The trend is going in the right direction, the trend is going down,” she said.

Small and medium counties can open schools when new positive cases drop below 90 per week. Hood River County, which may also qualify for in-person/hybrid education, reported 61 new cases and a 3.1 percent test positivity rate in the “warning” week, according to Oregon Health Authority data. Neither county is on track to move out of the “extreme risk” category, which requires a weekly case count of fewer than 60.

Prior to opening for on site education, a “blueprint” must be created for each school building showing how the building will function safely. State guidelines for the blueprint were revised Jan. 20, and as of Friday Wasco County School District 21 was reworking their blueprints to the new requirements. No date has yet been set for a return to classes.

National, state and county numbers show a peak in new cases in December, a second but smaller peak in January, and a decline into February. “What’s really encouraging is that the percent positivity is going down, even as we are testing the way we need to,” McDonell said. In the past two weeks, 163 individuals were tested at a drive-up testing clinic in The Dalles with only one positive result, she said.

Vaccinations

Wasco County

Vaccination clinics (invitation only) at Fort Dalles Readiness Center continue and have been very successful, McDonell said. “We are working on how to safely get older adults to the clinics,” she said. As of Monday, Feb. 8, seniors age 80 and older are being actively scheduled to receive the vaccine, and are encouraged to sign up online.

Wasco, Sherman and Gilliam county residents are encouraged to go online to www.ncphd.org/phase-notifications and fill out a form that will help the department schedule future vaccine distribution.

Those who sign up will be notified once their group is eligible to get the vaccine, and they will be sent a link to sign themselves up for an appointment. Be aware that vaccine supplies are still limited and slots fill up quickly. People are encouraged to check back regularly to find available appointments as new vaccine clinics are added to the schedule.

Note: Do to a technical error, those who attempted to sign up for the notification between 1-6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 4, are asked to do so again. Due to a technical difficulty, those forms were not received into the database. All information submitted remains secure, according to a Feb. 5 notification from NCPHD.

“It is exceptionally helpful if people sign up,” McDonell said. “We have to contact a lot of people.”

More than one person can be signed up through a single email account, she added. “You can help others sign up on your own email address, if your friends or family don’t have Internet access. This step is crucial in ensuring we’re getting our most venerable populations seen in the order laid out in OHA’s Vaccination Distribution Plan.”

Anyone in Phase 1a who has not yet received a vaccine is encouraged to call NWCPHD at 541-506-2600; all other groups are discouraged from calling due to extreme call volume.

Hood River County

In Hood River County, residents in Phase 1a who have not yet received a first dose of the vaccine, should email covidvaccine@co.hood-river.or.us. Designated information lines are 541-399-8022 (English) or 541-399-8023 (Español). The phase broadly includes all healthcare workers, mental health workers, workers in group homes, and emergency responders. To see if you fall into the top priority Phase 1a, visit Oregon’s Phase 1a vaccine sequencing plan, at bit.ly/3a6lIMG. The key information is on pages 5-10 of the document.

Hood River County has an allotment of 200 COVID-19 doses this week for 80 and over have been divided between three local clinics that will target the 1B group 2, 80 and older.

Getting the vaccines this week are Providence Health, One Community Health and Columbia Gorge Family Medicine. Others will be added as supply allows, according to Mike Matthews, County Environmental Health supervisor. Primary care providers will be reaching out directly to their 80 and older patients.

“We are asking that people not call the Health Department or their provider but wait for the provider to contact them with instructions. If someone 80 or older does not have a primary care provider they can call 541-387-6911 to schedule a vaccination. Vaccine will continue to be pushed to local providers for distribution to the elderly groups as we receive it." (Only one clinic is scheduled in Hood River this week, on Feb. 10.)

Between 200-225 people were vaccinated last week at the Hood River County Health Department drive-through clinics on the Heights. The vaccination sessions focused on two groups: educators and first responders.

After recipients are directed into one of four vehicle lanes, their personal information is recorded and then a nurse administers the vaccination through the car window. (Some people are getting “walk-up” service.) As soon as the shot is given, another volunteer places a bright green or orange adhesive paper on the windshield, and recipients are asked to remain in place for either 15 or 30 minutes before leaving, standard procedure in case of allergic reaction to the vaccine.

Statewide, seniors will be able to get a vaccine, but most seniors will not be able to get immunized for several weeks. Those over 80 are eligible starting Feb. 8, and 75-and up, 70 and up, and 65-and-up on Feb. 15, Feb. 22 and March 1, respectively.

The county Health Department is currently scheduling vaccinations to complete All Phase 1a and Phase 1b, Group 1. If you are in one of these groups and have not been contacted by the Health Department, send an email to: covidvaccine@co.hood-river.or.us if you do not have email call 541-387-6911.

According the county Health Department website, there are more than 750,000 people aged 65 or older statewide. While Oregon has already vaccinated more than 100,000 people aged 60 and older, state health officials estimate it will take until mid-April to vaccinate more than 7 in 10 Oregon seniors.

Clinic scheduling is dependent on vaccine shipments, these are the dates for when Oregonians age 65 and older can start getting vaccinated once vaccine arrives.

Klickitat County

The vaccine is available to anyone 65 and older, and all people 50 and older who also live in a multigenerational household, according to the Washington State Department of Health.

This is in addition to populations eligible during phase 1A including health care workers at high risk for COVID-19 infection, first responders, people who live or work in long-term care facilities, and all other workers in health settings who are at risk of COVID-19.

McDonell noted that just because a group becomes eligible, that doesn’t mean the vaccine will be immediately available.

“We don’t have nearly enough vaccine for all the people who want it at this moment,” she said. “We are trying to follow the state guidance, because once you vary from that, it becomes very complex.” She said some categories are very broad, like essential works. "You can’t say who is more important, a public employee keeping infrastructure operating or a clerk bagging groceries. It's a false dichotomy; they are all important. It’s not perfect,” she said of the vaccination groups.

She noted that apparent disparities between counties is going to happen because there simply isn’t enough vaccine at this time. She emphasized that every county is experiencing the same issues and problems brought by the pandemic. “It isn’t us and them, its just us,” she said. “It’s just us, its all of us, and there is not enough vaccine.”

Under Oregon guidelines, adults over age 80 became eligible for vaccines Feb. 8. Those 75 and older are eligible Feb. 15, those 70 and older are eligible on Feb. 22 and those 65 and older are eligible March 1. Once any group becomes eligible, they remain eligible even after additional groups have become eligible, McDonell said.

IMcDonell said it’s important communities recognize just how hard the pandemic has been. “We, all of us, are exhausted. It’s important to acknowledge that. We all need to take a breather, recognize the toll this has taken. The sadness can be overwhelming, its a lot.

“Keep following the safety precautions — we are going to keep going, we are going to get there.”