The latest news stories across the state of Oregon from the digital home of the Oregon coastal cities, OregonBeachMagazine.com
Friday, October 22, 2021
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Warrenton Fire Department Gains Volunteers Despite Mandates
As some people lose their jobs in Oregon and Washington because of COVID vaccine mandates taking effect this week, a small fire department in Warrenton is unexpectedly gaining volunteers.
Cade Wilkins is one of the newest recruits, who started several weeks ago.
“I feel like I can give back to the community,” he said. “Feel like I have the ability to help out in any way I can.”
Wilkins moved to the northern Oregon coast city of Warrenton from Clackamas about three years ago. His day job is teaching government, economics and weight training at Warrenton High School. He also coaches football and baseball, but wanted to do even more for the community.
After seeing the tough job for fire crews during last year’s wildfires, he started working toward the goal of joining the local fire department as a volunteer.
He’s one of five new recruits, an unexpected windfall for Warrenton Fire Department.
“We actually ended up having people step forward, hearing about the crisis looming,” mayor Henry Balensifer said.
Balensifer joined several other small-town mayors in expressing concern to the governor before this week’s COVID vaccine mandate took effect.
He worried emergency departments would lose critical volunteers and services.
“Anytime you see somebody who doesn’t have to be there be told they have to do something…their hair [stands] up a little bit,” Balensifer said.
According to the mayor, ultimately one volunteer in the department received a medical exemption for the vaccine. One other was let go for not getting the vaccine.
However, all other members of the department got vaccinated, many after consulting their doctors.
“A lot of people put aside their personal beliefs…and got the shot because once again, they’re putting service above themselves,” Balensifer said.
Three of the five new volunteers are already certified medics.
“It’s heartening to see the volunteer spirit of rural America, of rural Oregon, to once again step in and say ‘call on me,” Balensifer added.
Other small towns may not be seeing the same luck. Balensifer said the mayors of Dayton and Fossil are concerned as emergency departments lose volunteers.
However, he hopes potential volunteers will be inspired by Warrenton’s example.
For Wilkins, joining the department was not about the vaccine.
“This wasn’t something I just woke up one day and decided I want to do,” Wilkins said. “A lot of thought went into this.”
The vaccine was simply a step to join the ranks and help his community.
“We’re all down here, trying to help out one another, and we’re all just trying to do the best we can.”
Measure Would Renew Tax For Florence Area Ambulance Services
Western Lane Ambulance District, which provides emergency medical services to the more than 22,000 people in the Florence and Swisshome-Deadwood area, brought forth ballot measure 20-322 that would renew a five-year operational levy to continue to provide emergency medical and ambulance services.
The first levy was passed in 2012 in response to an increased 911 call volume and need for additional medical staff. The levy costs homeowners 45 cents per $1,000 of assessed home value, which is around $90 each year for a $200,000 home. The levy expires next year unless voters renew it.
Mike Caven, president of Lane Professional Firefighters IAFF-851 which represents the medical workers in the district, said renewing the levy is vital to keeping current levels of service.
“We’re not asking for more money or to increase the tax. We’re asking to maintain an operational levy that’s almost a decade old, and maintain the high level of service that our members provide to the Florence community,” Caven said.
Caven said there has been some organized opposition from outside groups, which he suspects is part of an effort to privatize the medical services.
According to an Oregon Secretary of State database, a political action committee named Stop the Ambulance Tax PAC, received $8,000 from the Oregon Taxpayers Association to lobby against the levy.
“We found out last week that the Oregon Taxpayers Association has thrown $8,000 into that race, and so it concerns us of what the interests are outside of the Florence community to spend that kind of money to eliminate an already existing tax,” Caven said.
The current levy is set to expire in 2022. If voters reject its renewal, Caven says the department has another chance to propose the renewal next May. If that fails, it would have a serious impact on service.
“If for some reason we were unsuccessful, that would significantly reduce the ambulance district’s availability to catch all of the calls that are necessary. And then those hard choices would be made by policymakers on what to do next,” Caven said.
Oregon reports 1,407 new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases, 40 new deaths
There are 40 new COVID-19 related deaths in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 4,275. The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) reported 1,407 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19 bringing the state total to 356,061.
The new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases reported today are in the following counties: Baker (10), Benton (29), Clackamas (108), Clatsop (1), Columbia (16), Coos (31), Crook (40), Curry (2), Deschutes (146), Douglas (46), Gilliam (1), Grant (5), Harney (16), Hood River (5), Jackson (75), Jefferson (15), Josephine (15), Klamath (67), Lake (6), Lane (113), Lincoln (8), Linn (49), Malheur (22), Marion (98), Morrow (4), Multnomah (190), Polk (37), Tillamook (5), Umatilla (50), Union (11), Wallowa (3), Wasco (10), Washington (144) and Yamhill (29).
COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are down in Oregon over the last week, but the number of deaths is up. The Oregon Health Authority released that assessment yesterday. The agency says 183 people died with COVID-19 over the last week, which is the highest weekly death toll since January.
New cases declined eleven-percent, and hospitalizations were down nine-percent. The number of positive COVID-19 tests dropped to seven-point-six percent. Health officials want that number to be below five-percent.
State Health Officials to Add Approximately 550 COVID-19 Deaths from May to August 2021 to State Totals, Omitted Due to Technical Error
Over the coming weeks, the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) will begin reporting approximately 550 deaths among people who died with COVID-19 but whose deaths only became recently known to state epidemiologists due to a technical computer error. Most of these deaths occurred between May 2021 and August 2021.
The deaths will be reviewed during the data reconciliation process over the next month. People who have died and meet the COVID-19 death definition based on death certificates will reported on the Oregon Health Authority’s COVID-19 dashboards and its daily COVID-19 media releases. As a result, daily reported COVID-19-related deaths will be higher than usual until the backlog is resolved. Details of all deaths will be listed in OHA’s daily COVID-19 media release, which is published weekdays.
OHA’s reporting of COVID-19 deaths involves reconciling death records to case records, which is done manually. OHA has been working to automate the process but that has led to periodic backlogs, such as what is being reported today.
“We are taking steps to ensure that our reporting is comprehensive and transparent,” said OHA Director Patrick Allen. “We extend our condolences to everyone who has suffered a loss to COVID-19, and we deeply regret the pain this disclosure may cause.”
The additional deaths will affect Oregon’s national standing in COVID-19 death rates. Presently, Oregon has the 6th lowest death rate in the nation. The newly reported deaths are expected to push Oregon’s death rate past one or two other states. However, Oregon’s death rate will remain well below the national average and the fatality rates of most other states.
State health officials estimate that if Oregon’s death rate matched the national average, another 4,000 or more Oregonians would have died from COVID-19. Health officials attribute Oregon’s comparatively low death rate to vaccinations, mask wearing and other social distancing measures, which Oregonians have practiced to a greater extent than residents of many other states.
Death is a lagging indicator and generally follows a surge in cases. In addition, there is often a delay in reporting as OHA epidemiologists review death certificates.
OHA expects that reported deaths may continue to be high even as daily case counts decrease. This is due to the time period between when a person tests positive for a case of COVID-19 and when they die with COVID-19.
The newly enhanced COVID-19 Case Severity dashboard visualizes the time lag between when case onset and dates of death. Peak deaths routinely trail peak case onset by two weeks.
State of Oregon Significantly Increases Child Care Assistance for Working Families
Need to know
- Child care copays through the Employment Related Day Care program have decreased to an average of $16 per month for working families.
- Approximately 8,200 working families receive child care assistance through the Employment Related Day Care program.
- Working families can apply for child care assistance and other government supports at One.Oregon.Gov
(Salem) – Finding affordable, quality child care has long been a struggle for families, and the pandemic has only made this situation worse. Working families who participate in the Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS), Employment Related Day Care Program (ERDC) will see their child care costs significantly decrease, making child care more accessible across the state.
ERDC helps eligible working families pay for child care, including registration and enrollment fees. ERDC is a subsidy program, which means some families, depending on their income, may be required to pay a copay.
These changes will support working families by:
- Decreasing the average family copay to $16 per month.
- Reducing the family copay to $0 for families who make 100% or less of the federal poverty level (an annual income of $21,960 for a family of three).
- Limiting family copays to no more than $130 a month.
“For many families the cost of child care can be a barrier to entering and staying connected to the workforce,” said Dan Haun, director of the ODHS Self-Sufficiency Programs. “This copay decrease will support working families across Oregon as they continue to deal with the many challenges facing families in today’s world.”
These changes are effective for families renewing or applying for the ERDC program on or after Oct. 1, 2021.
From March 2020 through September 2021, the federal government temporarily permitted ODHS to offer $0 copay child care assistance to families participating in the ERDC program during the COVID-19 pandemic. These temporary COVID-19 changes expired on Sept. 30, 2021.
Prior to the temporary COVID-19 copay changes, the average family copay was approximately $250. The lowest possible monthly family copay was $27.
In addition to copay reductions, the Early Learning Division (ELD) has been using federal relief funds to provide grants directly to child care providers to stabilize our existing child care supply and help providers stay in business.
“We know that access to quality, affordable child care that meets families’ needs continues to be out of reach for many families across the state,” said Alyssa Chatterjee, Early Learning System Director of the Early Learning Division. “Reducing the copays for eligible families will not only allow more families to find care, but also provide additional stability for our child care providers who accept subsidies.”
Working families who earn 185% of the federal poverty level, or $40,626 annually for a family of three, may be eligible to enroll in the ODHS Employment Related Day Care program.
Oregonians can apply online for Employment Related Day Care Assistance and other government supports online at One.Oregon.Gov or by phone at 1-800-699-9075 or TTY 711.
The copay reduction is made possible by additional funding provided by the federal government through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act; the 2021 Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act; the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021; and the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Child Care Development Fund.
Resources to help meet basic needs
- Find a food pantry: foodfinder.oregonfoodbank.org
- Dial 2-1-1, or text your zip code to 898-211 for help finding local resources and supports, including child care in your community.
- Visit www.211info.org for help finding local resources and supports, including child care in your community.
- Oregon Department of Human Services Resources
The Oregon Department of Human Services, Self-Sufficiency Programs operates the Employment Related Day Care program. The Employment Related Day Care program helps working families pay for child care, including registration and enrollment fees. It also works with partners statewide, including the Early Learning Division, to help families find quality child care. — Oregon Department of Human Services
OSP Troopers Seize 4 Pounds Of Meth In Traffic Stop Near Klamath Falls
Oregon State Police arrested two California men just outside of Klamath Falls earlier this week after discovering that they were smuggling methamphetamine north through Oregon, according to the agency.
On Tuesday afternoon shortly before 2:30 p.m., an OSP trooper pulled over the driver of a blue Honda civic northbound on Highway 97 between the Klamath River and Highway 140 for an undisclosed traffic violation.
OSP said that the trooper saw “signs of criminal activity” during the stop and developed probable cause for a search. During the search, the trooper found an ice chest with a false bottom, concealing four pounds of suspected methamphetamine. The agency said that at OSP drug detection K-9 helped at the scene.
Troopers arrested two men, driver 37-year-old Antonio Nicolas Navarro-Medica of Gilroy, California, and passenger 49-year-old Trinidad Rodriguez of San Jose, California. Both were charged with possession and delivery of methamphetamine.
The Washington State Attorney General is filing a lawsuit against a Corvallis, Oregon company accused of illegally using robocalls to sell a robocall-blocking service.
Global Grid Telecom is accused of making over 54-thousand calls to Washington residents with 46-thousand calls to numbers on the Do Not Call registry. One person received 23 calls. The company was selling a service to CenturyLink customers that were already available from CenturyLink. The lawsuit seeks to return money to Washingtonians who paid for the service.
Gov. Brown Commutes Sentences of 70 People Convicted When Juveniles
Gov. Brown has commuted the sentences of more than 70 people convicted of felonies while juveniles, but the action doesn’t automatically mean they are about to be released.
The governor’s commutations earlier this week granted some adults in custody who committed serious crimes as juveniles the opportunity to appear before the Oregon State Board of Parole and Post Prison Supervision to argue for their release after 15 years in prison.
The list includes people convicted between 1988 and 2019 for crimes such as murder, assault, rape and manslaughter while juveniles.
A 2019 bill made changes to the mandatory minimum sentences for minors sentenced on or after Jan. 1, 2020. While the legislation was not retroactive, Brown’s commutations effectively apply part of Senate Bill 1008 — known as a second-look hearing — to the list of 70 people currently in prison.
Warning of Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Tainted Onions
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned people Wednesday to check their vegetables after more than 650 people were diagnosed with salmonella linked to onions imported from Mexico.
Cases were reported in 37 states with at least 158 cases in Texas alone. Two people had become ill in Oregon as of Thursday, officials said.
Still, the CDC recommended everyone, businesses and consumers alike, check their onions. The outbreak has been linked to red, yellow and white onions from the brand Prosource Inc. originating in Mexico.
If any onions in your home or business have packaging indicating they are from Prosource and originated in Mexico, throw them away, the CDC said. If you are unable to tell the brand and source of the onions, play it safe and toss them anyway.
Officials also said to wash any surfaces or containers the onions may have come in contact with using hot, soapy water.
Symptoms of salmonella include diarrhea, stomach cramps and fever, which can begin anywhere from six hours to six days after consuming tainted food.
The CDC recommended contacting your doctor if you experience severe diarrhea with a fever over 102 degrees, diarrhea for three days or longer or bloody diarrhea. Other concerning symptoms include vomiting and dehydration.
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