State COVID-19 cases rose 42% last week

New cases of COVID-19 rose 42% in the state last week, after a steady nine weeks of declines, according to the Oregon Health Authority. Testing for COVID rose by 16%, the agency reported, but the ratio of positive tests rose only slightly, from 2.7% to 2.9%. The state reported 446 new cases on Thursday, and a seven-day rolling average of 305.6 new cases per day.

New hospitalizations continued to drop, from 148 the previous week to 97 last week; the OHA reported that was “the first week in which fewer than 100 were reported since the week of June 28– July 4, 2021 (when 66 were reported).”

However, 140 COVID-19-associated deaths were reported, up from 99 last week.

New hospitalizations and increased deaths typically lag at least two weeks behind an increase in cases. Oregon is frequently behind in its death reports, however.

The state has ended its daily press releases, which among other things provided the age, location and county of residence for reported deaths, and has also ended a requirement to quarantine after exposure to a known case of COVID-19, unless the exposed person develops symptoms. However, COVID-19 is often transmissible before symptoms develop.

As of press time on Thursday, Yamhill County had not updated its data page since Tuesday, when it reported no new cases. The OHA reported seven new cases in the county on Wednesday. Including that count, there have been 17,744 cases in the county since reporting began in early 2020, and 212 deaths.

There have been 706,251 cases and 7,281 deaths in Oregon since the start of the pandemic.