Effective this Friday, 23 Oregon counties will move or remain in the High Risk level for COVID-19 restrictions. Some of them qualify for Extreme risk but weren’t moved there.
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Deschutes County, which includes the city of Bend, is one of eleven counties that qualify for Extreme risk, based on their COVID-19 case counts and percent positivity rates.
“Deschutes County remains in the High risk level.”
Health Services spokesperson Morgan Emerson explains why.
“Because Oregon didn’t exceed the statewide metrics for hospitalizations, Deschutes County was not moved to the Extreme risk level,” Emerson said.
The statewide hospitalization metrics read like this: COVID-19 positive patients occupying 300 hospital beds or more and a 15% increase in the seven-day hospitalization average over the past week.
There are currently no Oregon counties in the Extreme risk category. Emerson says Deschutes County remains focused on reducing their high case counts and increasing vaccination efforts.
The 11 counties that qualify for Extreme Risk, based on their county case metrics, but are assigned High Risk because the statewide hospitalization triggers have not been met are:
Baker, Clackamas, Columbia, Crook, Deschutes, Jackson, Josephine, Klamath, Linn, Marion, and Polk.