Governor Brown Expands Oregon COVID-19 Mask Requirements | Kyodo Newswire

Salem, Oregon (AP)—Total number of confirmed colon viruses in Oregon since the start of Oregon. Pandemic exceeded 22,600 On Friday when Malhuer County was returned to Phase 1, Governor Kate Brown expanded mask requirements for office space.

The new face that will cover the guidance will be corridors, bathrooms, elevators and lobbies in public and private office buildings, unless employees are in individual work spaces or meeting rooms that are 6 feet from others. Masks are required for rest rooms, rest rooms, and other common spaces. Will be maintained.

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The new requirements comply with the list of COVID-19 safety restrictions and requirements implemented by the governor in the last two months. Health authorities in the last two weeks have

According to the state’s weekly COVID-19 report, daily cases of COVID-19 fell slightly between the week of Monday 3 August and Sunday 9 August. Hospitalization peaked

“Seeing this decline is a sign that the spread (of COVID-19) has slowed,” said Patrick Allen, director of the Oregon Department of Health.

The proportion of positive tests in the state was also reduced to 5.4%.

But not all cases in the state are stagnant.

Over the past two weeks, Malheur County, adjacent to Idaho in southeastern Oregon, had a positive test rate of 26%.

Due to the rapid spread of the virus in the county, Governor Brown announced that from August 17, Maul County would return from Phase 2 to Phase 1.

“In the past month, the number of COVID-19s in Maul County has grown significantly, and we need to recapture the restrictions, or we risk more illness and death in the area,” Brown said. Said the governor. “I know this change is difficult, but we need immediate action to reduce the spread of the disease and protect all who call Mulwool County home.”

The county will remain in Phase 1 with recreational sports, swimming pools, cinemas and arcades closed for at least 21 days.

Malheur reported 18 new cases on Friday.

The total number of new cases reported in the state was 323. There were two new deaths related to COVID-19, and the number of deaths in the state increased to 385.

Also on Friday, Oregon Health Department epidemiologists released a study showing that the number of Oregon infected with coronaviruses could be ten times higher than reported infection rates obtained through conventional testing. Did.

The study, published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, found that 1% of Oregon without COVID-19 had evidence of past virus infection in their blood as of mid-June. I reported that.

“We suspect that much more segments of the Oregon population are exposed to and infected with COVID-19.” However, these results indicate that the majority of Oregon people are still infected with the virus. It shows that it is doing.”

In this study, nine out of 897 blood samples collected from 19 healthcare facilities around Oregon between May 11 and June 15 contained antibodies to the virus that causes COVID-19. understood.

In a statement from the Oregon Department of Health, such a seroprevalence study, in which healthcare professionals test blood samples for antibodies, “can more accurately estimate infection rates than conventional tests,” he said.

“Most of us are still vulnerable, so we need to continue our physical distance and masking exercises until we have effective vaccines, treatments, or other means to reduce the disease.”

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Klein is a corps member of the Associated Press/Report of the American State House News Initiative. Report for America is a non-profit national service program that places journalists in the local newsroom to report on unreported issues.

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