Tag: Health

OHA reports 21 more COVID deaths; 1,283 new cases reported

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December 17, 2020

COVID-19 has claimed 21 more lives in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 1,283, the Oregon Health Authority reported Thursday.

The OHA reported 1,339 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19, bringing the state total to 98,936.

The new cases reported Thursday are in the following counties: Baker (2), Benton (20), Clackamas (173), Clatsop (3), Columbia (18), Coos (5), Crook (4), Curry (1), Deschutes (48), Douglas (12), Gilliam (3), Hood River (23), Jackson (82), Jefferson (10), Josephine (24), Klamath (19), Lane (74), Lincoln (8), Linn (60), Malheur (13), Marion (148), Morrow (5), Multnomah (250), Polk (20), Tillamook (12), Umatilla (34), Union (13), Wasco (9), Washington (218), Wheeler (1) and Yamhill (27).

Deschutes County has reported 3,389 cases since the pandemic began; 18 people have died.

The county had 2,245 active cases as of Wednesday, the latest data available – that’s one in 88 residents; 1,079 patients have recovered.

Crook County has reported 368 total cases and six deaths.

Jefferson County has reported 1,204 total cases and 12 deaths.

St. Charles on Thursday reported it had 50 COVID patients; four are in the ICU and two are on a ventilator.

“While having a low number of COVID-19 patients in the ICU may seem like it’s not too big of a deal, it is important to remember that many patients need ICU care for other reasons like heart attacks, strokes or car accidents,” according to St. Charles.

The hospital system has 30 ICU beds; 24 in Bend and six in Redmond.

The ICU was full as of Tuesday afternoon, according to St. Charles officials.

The number of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 across Oregon is 551, which is three fewer than Wednesday. There are 113 COVID-19 patients in ICU beds, which is unchanged from Wednesday.

The total number of patients in hospital beds may fluctuate between report times.

The numbers do not reflect admissions per day, nor the length of hospital stay. Staffing limitations are not captured in this data and may further limit bed capacity.

More information about hospital capacity can be found here.

State, insurance companies reach telehealth deal through 2020

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June 23, 2020

Salem – The State of Oregon has reached an agreement with several health insurance companies to continue providing expanded telehealth options through at least the end of the year.

“Throughout this pandemic, telehealth has provided Oregonians with essential access to health care services that otherwise might have been unavailable or required the risk of an in-person appointment,” said Gov. Kate Brown. “It has transformed how many people have accessed behavioral health services. I’d like to thank Oregon’s insurers for partnering with us in this agreement, which gives us the opportunity and the time to develop more permanent telehealth policies with appropriate flexibilities during the 2021 session.”

The agreement follows guidance issued by the Department of Consumer and Business Services and the Oregon Health Authority in late March requiring health insurance plans of all types to provide coverage for multiple telehealth platforms at the same rate as an in-person visit to limit in-person health care services.

This means health insurance companies will continue to provide coverage for expanded telehealth services for Oregonians and pay for these services at the rates they established during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Our health insurance companies continue to step up. This agreement is an important one for our state,” said Andrew Stolfi, insurance commissioner and acting director of DCBS. “It means Oregonians can get the critical health care services they need, and providers will continue to get paid for providing this important care, while we all work together to minimize the spread of the coronavirus.”

The following insurance companies have agreed to provide expanded telehealth services through the end of the year:

Bridgespan PacificSource
Cigna Providence
Health Net Regence
Kaiser Permanente Samaritan
Moda United Healthcare

In addition to these companies, the Oregon Health Plan will continue to offer pay parity and other allowances for many telehealth services, offering the same rate as an in-person visit for physical health services, behavioral health services, and some dental and long-term care services.

It is important to note that this agreement does not apply to self-insured plans. The state encourages self-insured plans to cover expanded telehealth services for members. These are plans in which an employer assumes the financial risk of providing health care benefits to its employees. Oregonians who have a self-insured plan should check with their employer about their coverage options.

Oregonians are encouraged to contact their insurance company or health care provider if they have questions about using telehealth services.

Visit the Division of Financial Regulation’s COVID-19 telehealth page for frequently asked questions and additional information. For more information on insurance and financial topics, visit the COVID-19 consumer site.

For up-to-date information and resources on COVID-19, visit the Oregon Health Authority COVID-19 site.

If you have questions about an insurance company or agent or need to file a complaint, call the Division of Financial Regulation’s advocacy team at 888-877-4894 (toll-free) or email dfr.insurancehelp@oregon.gov.

Rabid Bat Bites Visitor in Breitenbush Area

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August 7, 2019

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Public health officials are warning residents to be careful after a person was bitten by a rabid bat in the Breitenbush area.

The Statesman Journal reports health officials said the person was bitten on Saturday, but declined to say exactly where the incident happened, or whether the out-of-state visitor was an adult or child.

The victim captured the bat and brought it to the Marion County Health Department, according to program supervisor Alisa Zastoupil.

The bat was sent to Oregon State University for testing, which confirmed it was infected with rabies.

Breitenbush, an unincorporated community about 10 miles east of Detroit, includes the Breitenbush Hot Springs Retreat and Conference Center, and a group of privately owned vacation homes.

This year, three other bats have tested positive for rabies in Oregon — in Linn, Jackson and Washington counties.

OSU-Cascades Researcher’s Study on Tanning Makes National Headlines

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May 8, 2018

A new study from OSU-Cascades has found many millennials lack the knowledge about the importance of sunscreen and continue to tan both indoors and outdoors.

Central Oregon Daily’s Lisa Carton sat down with the lead researcher in this study, which has garnered national attention, and the results were surprising.

The study looked at 250 college students, most between 18 and 23 years old. The findings showed that continued sun exposure was in part due to low self-esteem and high rates of narcissism, which fuels the addictive tanning behavior.

Flu Cases on the Decline Locally

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January 24, 2018

This years flu season has turned into an epidemic, killing at lest 30 children since October and closed schools across the county. While nationally the flu season shows no signs of slowing down, in Deschutes County reported flu cases are on the decline.

This year’s flu struck hard in 32 states, including Oregon, which reported record high numbers of emergency room visits due to the flu.

Part of that may have to do with this year’s predominant flu strain, H3N2, which tends to come with more severe symptoms.

In Deschutes County alone 102 residents went to the emergency room with the flu in the first week of January, but as the month goes on that number has dropped significantly. In the second week of January 86 people went to the emergency room with the flu and only 58 cases were reported between January 14th and 20th.

Children under 5 are one of the most vulnerable populations when it comes to the virus since their immune systems are still developing.  Elderly populations are also particularly vulnerable but officials are encouraging everyone to get vaccinated.

Even though the vaccine doesn’t guarantee you won’t catch the flu, it could lessen your symptoms and help you avoid complications like catching a secondary illness like pneumonia which commonly leads to hospitalization.

 

Helping Those With Eating Disorders

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December 6, 2016

Natalie Murphy registered dietician nutritionist with Central Oregon Dietician Consultants joins Donna Britt of Central Oregon Daily at 3pm to discuss the signs of eating disorders and how to help those with the disease. From taking the steps to have a medical evaluation, talk to a therapist or dietician, and visiting the National Eating Disorder Association’s website, there are options for help.