State health officials celebrated falling COVID-19 transmission rates on Friday, and also urged Oregonians to avoid social gatherings despite the temptations of the coming Labor Day weekend.

At the current transmission rate of 0.9, there are roughly nine new coronavirus infections for every 10 people who currently have the virus — a trend that will lead to a gradual decline in infections if it continues.

“This is tremendous progress, but it will only continue if we keep up the pressure,” Dr. Dean Sidelinger, state health officer and state epidemiologist, said in a statement. “We cannot ease up and allow Labor Day social gatherings to send our rate back up. This virus remains extremely contagious and spreads very quickly. It would not take much for cases to rise again.”

According to the Oregon Health Authority, about 560 people contract COVID-19 in Oregon each day — a number that’s higher than the state’s official count because it includes an estimate of those who contract the virus but are never diagnosed.

In a forecast of the coming three weeks, the agency outlines three possible scenarios:

• Status quo: If Oregon maintains its 0.9 transmission rate, new COVID-19 cases would fall from 560 per day now to 410 per day by Sept. 24. In this scenario, the state would see about six severe coronavirus cases per day.
• Getting better: If Oregon is able to reduce its transmission rate to 0.77, new COVID-19 cases would fall to 240 per day by Sept. 24. The state would see about five severe infections each day.
• Getting worse: If Oregon’s transmission rate climbs to 1.05, new COVID-19 cases would climb to about 790 per day, with about 11 severe infections each day.

“We’ve made great progress through hard work and sacrifice, but those gains are tenuous,” Sidelinger said. “It’s on every one of us to maintain the progress we’ve made against COVID-19, and together we can do it.”

Pools and playgrounds to open in more Oregon counties

Playgrounds and public pools will soon be open across Oregon.

These recreational facilities have been closed in some counties since March, when Oregon Gov. Kate Brown enacted her “Stay Home, Stay Safe” orders to curb the spread of COVID-19. While pools and playgrounds are already open in counties that have qualified to move from Phase 1 to Phase 2 of reopening. In Phase 1 counties, pools and playgrounds have remained closed.

But in a press conference Friday, Brown announced that these counties, too, will be able to open playgrounds and pools in every phase of reopening.

“We’re gradually looking at reopening some lower risk activities, such as reopening public pools and playgrounds,” Sidelinger, the state epidemiologist, said. “We are moving forward with science and safety in mind.”

Sidelinger said that reopening is possible for two reasons: the declining COVID-19 transmission rate in the state, and ever-increasing evidence that shows transmission is much less likely outdoors, including in swimming pools.

Oregon reports 5 coronavirus deaths, 268 diagnoses

Oregon reported five new deaths linked to COVID-19 on Friday, bringing the virus’ death toll in the state to 475.

The state also confirmed 268 new coronavirus diagnoses, bringing confirmed cases since the start of the pandemic to 27,601.

OHA said all of the people whose deaths were announced Friday had underlying medical conditions. They were:

• A 43-year-old Clackamas County man who tested positive Aug. 21 and died Aug. 25 at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center.
• A 52-year-old Multnomah County man who tested positive Aug. 25 and died Sept. 2 at Legacy Emanuel Medical Center.
• A 56-year-old Washington County woman who tested positive on July 15 and died Sept. 3 at OHSU Hospital.
• A 73-year-old Multnomah County man who tested positive Aug. 13 and died Sept. 1 at Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center.
• An 87-year-old Multnomah County woman who tested positive April 16 and died July 18 at her home. COVID-19 was ultimately determined to be a cause or significant factor contributing to her death.

Clark County, Washington, reports no deaths Friday

Another 27 people tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Clark County, Washington, the local public health department reported Thursday. To date, 2,715 Clark County residents have tested positive for the virus, and 51 have died.

Since the start of the pandemic, 75,856 people have been diagnosed with COVID-19 in Washington, and 1,945 have died, according to the latest counts available from the state.

Oregon double-counted a 37-year-old woman’s death

Last week, the Oregon Health Authority reported two COVID-19 deaths of people under 40 in two days, in what appeared to be an alarming, though short, streak for a virus that has disproportionately been fatal for older people. On Thursday, the state agency said that one of those deaths was accidentally reported twice.

The 37-year-old Washington County woman whose death was reported on Aug. 29 was also counted in the state’s Aug. 22 coronavirus tally.

The Oregon Health Authority said a data compilation error was to blame. It has since updated its coronavirus statistics. “OHA regrets the error,” the agency said in a press release.