Lane County reported 75 new positive COVID-19 cases, and one related death over the weekend. Six of the positive cases are associated with long term care facilities. Despite a surge in cases the past couple of weeks, a Lane County Public Health official says the rapid growth rate is starting to slow.
The new cases reported on Monday are the combination of results gathered from Friday evening through Monday morning, according to Public Health spokesperson Jason Davis. Though it may seem alarming, he said it's important to view counts as a whole, or by looking at the epidemiological curve.
"You saw [a] peak back in March, and then you saw a slow down and we enjoyed a nice steady pace all through March, April, May, and then in June we saw another little peak with those end of year gatherings and those early summer gatherings, and then we kinda tabled off," Davis said.
He said the recent growth rate is starting to slow down, and the number of infected individuals has decreased from 200 to 179. But, the county remains on high alert.
The notice was issued after results spread to more age groups, Davis said. People under the age of 30 have largely made up the bulk of cases, leading some in the community to question how incoming University of Oregon students will affect local cases.
"Now that we have a sort of injection of new people in the community as the catalyst and subsequent cases stacking on after that we are experiencing a definite climb in our cases," he said.
The UO, also on high alert, reported 64 positive COVID-19 cases between Sept. 21 and Sept. 25. All but four of those cases involve people living off-campus, according to the UO COVID-19 webpage. Even so, Davis said keeping case counts down is the responsibility of everyone regardless of age.
“This is not a University of Oregon problem, this is not even a young person problem, this is a community problem and it’s a behavior problem," he said. "If we focus on behaviors and we educate people, then we avoid making the mistake of pointing fingers and alleviating ourselves from responsibility.”
With fall and winter weather approaching, that responsibility will be critical. Rain and colder temperatures could mean fewer opportunities for outdoor meetings. Davis said this makes staying home, physical distancing, and masking up a priority.
“That will help the impact [of COVID-19] on our community be less, that will help our businesses stay open, that will help our K through 3 students go back to school sooner, that will help more of our elder community stay healthy and stay alive, and if nothing else that’s worth it right there,” he said.
Davis also suggested getting a flu shot to avoid contracting an upper respiratory infection.
The county’s eighteenth COVID-19 related death was a man from the Eugene-Springfield area. He was 85-years-old and had been hospitalized prior to his death on Sept. 27.
The total number of COVID-19 cases since the health department started tracking results in Lane County is 1,239, this includes both confirmed and pressumptive cases. There are 9 people currently hospitalized with COVID-19 in Lane County.
This post may be updated.
Copyright 2020, KLCC
