Oregon Governor Kate Brown announced Friday that Lane County has been added to the Watch List for COVID-19 case activity.
The news comes as Lane County’s sporadic or community spread of the virus surpassed state markers.
The threshold for making the Governor’s County Watch List includes a sporadic case rate of 50 or more per 100,000 people, in the last two weeks. As well as when a county has had more than five sporadic cases in the last two weeks.
In a statement, Gov. Brown said the Watch List “signifies caution” and acknowledged the viral spread in Lane County is “to some degree connected to student social activities.”
County spokesperson Jason Davis agrees, saying the growing percentage of college-age people refusing to comply with contact tracing and quarantining, is a big part of why Lane County made the list.
“I look at it sort of like a trip to the E.R.,” he said. “Obviously it’s not a situation you want to be in but, it is the only way forward and it will help.”
Counties remain on the Watch List at least three weeks. Davis said during that time, Lane County will receive resources from the Oregon Health Authority to increase epidemiological support, monitoring, case investigation and contact tracing.
There are now five counties on the Watch List: Benton, Clatsop, Lane, Malheur and Umatilla.
Friday, Public Health announced 82 new COVID-19 positive cases-- pushing the total case number to 2,041 in Lane County.
