Lane County COVID-19 update, Dec. 13: Oregon confirms 3 omicron-variant cases of COVID-19

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The omicron variant has been identified in Oregon.

Oregon’s first three cases of omicron-variant COVID-19 have been confirmed in Washington and Multnomah counties, Oregon Health Authority announced Monday evening. Oregon Health & Science University Laboratory conducted the sequencing that detected the variant Monday, Dec. 13. The samples the laboratory tested were from:

• A Multnomah County resident in their 20s, tested on Dec. 7, who was fully vaccinated. The individual traveled internationally to Canada prior to symptom onset. Additional details on the condition of the individual are not yet available.

• A Washington County resident in their 20s, tested on Dec. 9, who was fully vaccinated. Additional details on the condition of the individual are not yet available.

• A Washington County resident in their 30s, tested on Dec. 9, who was fully vaccinated. The individual traveled internationally to Mexico prior to symptom onset. Additional details on the condition of the individual are not yet available.

“On Dec. 1, when the first case was reported in the United States, we shared that it was a matter of ‘when,’ not ‘if,’ the omicron variant of COVID-19 would be detected in Oregon,” state health officer and state epidemiologist Dr. Dean Sidelinger said.

“We recognize this news is concerning to many people. However, if history is our guide, we do know that even if a vaccine doesn’t target a specific variant, the strong immune response you get from being fully vaccinated can still be highly protective against severe disease from all COVID-19 variants,” he said.

Sidelinger said OHA and its laboratory partners will continue to monitor the spread of omicron in Oregon with robust individual-level and community-level variant surveillance.

Oregon ranks 11th nationwide in the proportion of all specimens sequenced during the pandemic. Those efforts include sequencing of positive COVID-19 specimens at the Oregon State Public Health Laboratory, through academic laboratories, including those at Oregon Health & Science University and University of Oregon, and at several commercial laboratories statewide; and sequencing of wastewater samples in more than 40 communities statewide through a collaboration with Oregon State University’s TRACE program.

More on TRACE: Here’s the poop on how cutting-edge genomics is helping Oregon prepare for omicron

Sidelinger added that “it can’t be emphasized enough that vaccination remains the best protection against COVID-19 infection and transmission, including most circulating variants,” along with other protective measures, including wearing masks indoors and in crowded outdoor settings, physically distancing from others, washing hands regularly and staying home when sick.

Three deaths, 101 additional cases reported over three days

Lane County reported on Monday three deaths and 101 confirmed or presumptive cases of COVID-19 over a three-day period, raising the death toll to 341 and the countywide case count to 30,839.

There were 237 people considered infectious, an 18% drop from Friday's 290.

Twenty-seven Lane County residents were hospitalized Monday with two in intensive care and two on a ventilator.

Of the 27 county residents hospitalized Thursday, 77.8%, or 21, were unvaccinated, LCPH reported.

As of Dec. 6, 265,146 people in Lane County, 69.53% of the total population, had received first or second vaccine doses with 569,494 first and second doses administered in Lane County, according to the Oregon Health Authority.

OHA released the following information Monday about three Lane County COVD-19-related deaths:

• A 40-year-old man tested positive Oct. 18 and died Oct. 31 at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend. He had underlying conditions.

• A 60-year-old man tested positive Oct. 23 and died Oct. 25 at McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center. He had underlying conditions.

• An 84-year-old man tested positive Nov. 15 and died Dec. 9 at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend. Presence of underlying conditions is being confirmed.

— The Register-Guard

UK reports first known death from omicron

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson reported Monday the first known death from the omicron variant after saying the country faces a "tidal wave" of omicron cases.

The news comes after Johnson said Sunday he was opening booster shots to all adults. "I’m afraid it is now clear that two doses of vaccine are simply not enough to give the level of protection we all need,” Johnson said in an address to the U.K. announcing a new timeline for the country's booster rollout.

With the spread of the omicron variant looming, Dr. Anthony Fauci on Sunday told ABC News that preliminary data about omicron show the variant can "evade" some of the protection that vaccines offer but a booster dose "raises the level of protection high enough that it then does do well against the omicron."

"If you want to be optimally protected, absolutely get a booster," Fauci added.

When asked whether yearly boosters will be required, Fauci said he hoped the current boosters would increase the durability of protection beyond six months but that it remains unclear for how long they will offer protection. If another dose is necessary, "then we'll just have to deal with it when that occurs," Fauci said.

Monday also marks the one year anniversary of the first shipments of COVID-19 vaccine rolling out of Pfizer's production facilities and heading toward hospitals around the country to launch U.S. vaccination efforts.

More than 239 million people have since received at least one dose and 60.8% of Americans are fully vaccinated since the rollout of vaccines, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. However, only 26% of the population has received a booster dose.

Also in the news:

►More than a third of Americans are very or extremely worried about getting COVID-19 or a family member getting COVID-19, according to a new poll from The Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. That's up from about 25% who felt similar fears in late October.

►Omicron was newly reported in North Carolina and Ohio. The CDC says the new variant has now been detected in 27 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.

►South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is receiving treatment for mild COVID-19 symptoms after testing positive for the disease Sunday, his office said.

►Ghana on Monday announced a strict $3,500 fine for airlines who bring unvaccinated travelers to the West African country. Unvaccinated non-citizens may also be denied entry into the country.

📈 Today's numbers: The U.S. has recorded more than 49.9 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and more than 797,300 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Global totals: More than 270 million cases and 5.3 million deaths. More than 201.9 million Americans — 60.8% of the population — are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

Study: Young people recover quickly from rare COVID-19 vaccine side effect

Some people ages 21 and younger who developed a form of heart inflammation suspected to have come from the COVID-19 vaccine tend to have mild conditions and recover quickly, according to new research described by officials from Intermountain Healthcare last week.

The new study, published in the American Heart Association's journal "Circulation," compared data and medical records from patients at 26 pediatric medical centers across the U.S., including in Utah, and found that one in five patients were admitted to intensive care units, largely with the same symptoms, but none had died and most were released after two or three days.

“As the COVID vaccine came out worldwide, early on we started to hear reports in the spring of cases of heart inflammation or myocarditis,” said Dr. Dongngan T. Truong, associate professor of pediatrics in the division of cardiology at the University of Utah Health and a pediatric cardiologist at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital, in a news conference about the study.

The majority of patients, more than 90%, were male, and nearly every case was diagnosed after the patient had received an mRNA vaccine. Chest pain was the most common symptom, found in more than 99% of patients, while about a third of patients also experienced fever or shortness of breath.

“Recovery in the hospital was quite short with minimal medication to treat the myocarditis,” Truong said.

— Elle Cabrera, St. George Spectrum & Daily News

New York mandates masks indoors unless businesses require vaccine for entry

Gov. Kathy Hochul last week announced masks will be required to be worn in all indoor public places in New York unless businesses or venues implement a vaccine requirement for entry.

The new mask and vaccine mandates come as COVID-19 cases spiked statewide more than 43% since Thanksgiving, straining the health care system amid staffing shortages, according to the governor's office.

The new mask requirements extend to both patrons and staff. The measure takes effect Monday and will remain in place until Jan. 15, after which the state will re-evaluate based on current conditions.

The mandates aim to curb COVID-19 outbreaks during the holidays when more time is spent shopping and gathering indoors, where the virus can spread more easily, Hochul said in a statement.

— David Robinson, USA TODAY Network New York

Contributing: The Associated Press

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This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Lane County COVID-19 update: Omicron variant identified in Oregon