COVID-19 (Coronavirus)

Update: 10/26/2020 | 4:20 p.m.

The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) is maintaining a live webpage detailing COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) cases in Oregon and beyond. The OMA will continue to monitor COVID-19 information nationally and locally. The association will continue to work closely with federal, state, and local public health agencies and stakeholders to provide information to our members and their patients about the response to minimize transmission in our communities.

Recent Updates

10/26/20: Johns Hopkins University | Highest-Ever US Weekly Case Count
10/23/20: OHA | Highest-Ever Oregon Daily Case Count
10/23/20: Multnomah Added to Watch List; Benton and Clatsop Off
10/23/20: AMA | COVID-19 Inequity in Latinx Communities
10/23/20: Nature Medicine: Impact of Mask Use on US Mortality
10/23/20: Gov. Brown Extends COVID-19 Housing Protections for Agricultural Workers
10/23/20: Johns Hopkins University | US Daily Case Count Matches July's
10/22/20: OHA | Pandemic's Effect on Oregon Opioid Misuse Unclear
10/22/20: FDA Approves Veklury (Remdesivir) for COVID-19 Treatment
10/22/20: HHS | Relief Fund Extended to Additional Provider Types
10/21/20: CDC Updates "Close Contact" Definition
10/20/20: CDC | Number of Excess US COVID-19 Deaths
10/19/20: OHA | Revised Face Covering Guidance

An Open Letter to Oregon from the OMA President | April 11, 2020

On Saturday, April 11, 2020, the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) released a letter to Oregon penned by Kevin Ewanchyna, MD, the President of the Oregon Medical Association. The letter is reprinted here in full. Our thanks to our OHA colleagues for the opportunity to share Dr. Ewanchyna's message.

Like many healthcare professionals the world over, Oregon’s physicians, physician assistants, and other healthcare professionals are facing an unprecedented challenge, perhaps the most urgent of their careers. Given the scope of the problem presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, it would be easy—and understandable—for clinicians to feel overwhelmed.

It was Hippocrates who stated, “Cure sometimes, treat often, comfort always.” We have never before seen a moment, both for those currently delivering care and those receiving care, in which this statement has rung so very true. Read more.

OMA Statement on Measures to Prevent the Spread of COVID-19 | March 20, 2020

OMA physicians and physician assistants are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and want to assure their patients and the public that by following public health measures we can greatly minimize spreading the virus.

The OMA will continue to advocate for measures that help treat patients suffering with the disease, support frontline healthcare workers, and encourage the public to help slow the spread of the pandemic to save lives.

The OMA supports stay-at-home policies that communicate the importance and the gravity of following aggressive social distancing practices to the public. These practices are essential to help “flatten the curve” of COVID-19 cases during this pandemic to prevent overwhelming our hospitals and preserving our healthcare workforce for the benefit and safety of all Oregonians.

OMA Member Communications

COVID-19 response evolves rapidly, and so do corresponding guidelines, regulations, and best practices. Note that these archive versions of OMA communications may contain outdated information and web links. We do our best, however, to keep the other resources on this page updated. If you have a question about newsletter content, email the OMA.

10/26/20: COVID-19 Update: Multnomah Added to Watch List
10/23/20: COVID-19 Update: Remdesivir Approval
10/21/20: COVID-19 Update: Close Contact Definition
10/19/20: COVID-19 Update: Oregon Vaccination Plan Draft
10/16/20: COVID-19 Update: Lane County Added to Watch List
10/14/20: COVID-19 Update: CMS Expands Telehealth Services in Medicare and Medicaid
10/12/20: COVID-19 Update: Latest Round of CARES Act Relief Open Until Nov. 6
10/09/20: COVID-19 Update: Umatilla Back on Watch List
10/07/20: COVID-19 Update: Rapid Testing Strategy
10/05/20: COVID-19 Update: Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Adults
10/02/20: COVID-19 Update: Benton and Clatsop Counties Added to Watch List
09/30/20: COVID-19 Update: Flu Season Clashes with Pandemic
09/28/20: COVID-19 Update: Lincoln County Moving to Phase 2
09/23/20: COVID-19 Update: Decline in Care for Children
09/21/20: COVID-19 Update: County Watch List Updated
09/18/20: COVID-19 Update: CDC Clarification to Testing Guidance
09/16/20: COVID-19 Update: Delays in Testing due to Wildfires
09/11/20: COVID-19 Update: Wildfire Evacuation Protocol
09/09/20: COVID-19 Update: Updates to County Watch List, Phase 2 Prerequisites
09/02/20: COVID-19 Update: CDC Halts Evictions Nationwide
08/31/20: COVID-19 Update: Kids as Carriers
08/28/20: COVID-19 Update: Deadline for Medicaid/CHIP Relief Fund
08/26/20: COVID-19 Update: CDC Changes Testing Guidance
08/24/20: COVID-19 Update: Modeling Data Shows Improvement
08/19/20: COVID-19 Update: Oregon Positive Test Rate
08/17/20: COVID-19 Update: OHA to Report on Hospital PPE
08/14/20: COVID-19 Update: Malheur County Reopening Status
08/12/20: COVID-19 Update: Deadline for Telehealth Impact Survey
08/10/20: COVID-19 Update: Special Legislative Session
08/07/20: COVID-19 Update: County Watch List Updated
08/05/20: COVID-19 Update: Businesses Largely in Compliance
08/03/20: COVID-19 Update: Provider Fund Deadline Extended
07/31/30: COVID-19 Update: County Status Changes
07/29/20: COVID-19 Update: Aug. 3 deadline for Provider Relief Fund
07/27/20: COVID-19 Update: Underlying Conditions Increase Risk
07/24/20: COVID-19 Update: Public Health Emergency Extended
07/22/20: COVID-19 Update: New Requirements for Face Coverings and Business
07/20/20: COVID-19 Update: Deadline Extended for Medicaid/CHIP Relief Fund
07/17/20: COVID-19 Update: Change in Data Reporting
07/15/20: COVID-19 Update: CDC Calls for Wearing Masks
07/13/20: COVID-19 Update: Face Coverings, Gatherings Requirements
07/10/20: COVID-19 Update: Interim PPE Guidance
07/08/20: COVID-19 Update: Face Coverings News
07/02/20: COVID-19 Update: State of Emergency Extended
06/29/20: COVID-19 Update: Revised Face Coverings Requirement Applies Statewide
06/26/20: COVID-19 Update: MIPS Hardship Exemptions; Face Coverings Guidance
06/24/20: COVID-19 Update: Continued Telehealth Parity
06/22/20: COVID-19 Update: Expanded OHSU FAQ
06/19/20: COVID-19 Update: Face Coverings Guidance
06/17/20: COVID-19 Update: Face Covering Requirement; County Reopening Process
06/15/20: COVID-19 Update: Oregon Modeling Report
06/12/20: COVID-19 Update: Pause on County Reopening Apps
06/10/20: COVID-19 Update: New Provider Relief Fund Distributions
06/08/20: COVID-19 Update: AMA Urges Assistance in Securing Infection-Control Supplies
06/05/20: COVID-19 Update: Gov. Approves Counties for Phase 2
06/03/20: PRN: Gov. Announces Phase 2 Details
06/01/20: PRN: Relief Fund Revenue Info Due 6/3
05/29/20: PRN: Message for Oregon's Patients
05/27/20: PRN: COVID-19 Update
05/21/20: PRN: Business Oregon Addresses PPE Shortage; OMA Survey
05/21/20: PRN: COVID-19 Survey
05/20/20: PRN: Provider Relief Fund Action Due June 3
05/19/20: PRN: Supreme Court Halts Challenge to COVID-19 Orders
05/18/20: PRN: OHA to Distribute Remdesivir
05/15/20: PRN: Phase I Reopening Guidance
05/14/20: PRN: COVID-19 Survey
05/13/20: PRN: COVID-19-Linked Pediatric Condition
05/12/20: PRN: Request PPE donation replacement - due May 15
05/11/20: PRN: Oregon Medicaid COVID-19 Provider Guide
05/08/20: PRN: COVID-19 Update
05/07/20: PRN: Governor's Guidance for Reopening Oregon
05/06/20: PRN: Health Insurance Companies Emergency Order
05/05/20: PRN: Replace your PPE donation.
05/04/20: PRN: Guide for Reopening Practices
05/01/20: PRN: Oregon Testing and Contact Tracing Plans
04/30/20: PRN: Non-Urgent Procedures Guidance
04/29/20: PRN: CAT Requirements Eased
04/28/20: PRN: Provider Relief Fund Portal and FAQs
04/27/20: PRN: Relief Fund Portal Now Open
04/24/20: PRN: New Healthcare Stimulus Legislation
04/23/20: PRN: Gov. Announces Plan to Lift Order on Non-Urgent Procedures
04/22/20: PRN: Additional Provider Relief Fund Allocation
04/21/20: PRN: Updated Testing Guidance
04/20/20: PRN: OHSU Hotline for Managing COVID-19 Care
04/17/20: PRN: OHSU COVID-19 FAQ
04/16/20: PRN: SBA Loans Funds Lapse
04/15/20: PRN: Last Day for Business Impact Survey
04/14/20: PRN: Reopening Oregon Framework; Business Impact Survey
04/13/20: PRN: An Open Letter to Oregon
04/10/20: PRN: PPE Push-Based Allocation Plan
04/09/20: PRN: COVID-19 Rapid Testing in Rural Oregon
04/08/20: PRN: CMS on Non-Emergent Services; financial resources
04/07/20: PRN: AMA Pres. Address; Revised Non-Urgent Procedures Guidance
04/06/20: PRN: Resources for CARES Act Financial Health
04/03/20: PRN: Small Business Resource Navigator
04/02/20: PRN: Paycheck Protection Loan Webinar; Mental Health Resources
04/01/20: PRN: OHP for Low-Income Oregonians; Buprenorphine Guidance
03/31/20: PRN: CMS Regulatory Changes; Gov. Brown on PPE
03/30/20: PRN: Federal Disaster Declaration; CARES Act Summary
03/27/20: PRN: Stimulus Progresses; Sat. CMS Webcast
03/26/20: PRN: Stimulus for Healthcare; Governor's Task Force Report Released
03/25/20: PRN: Non-Urgent Procedures Guidance; AMA COVID-19 Coding Guidance
03/24/20: PRN: State Telehealth Guidance; Increasing COVID-19 Workforce
03/23/20: PRN: Gov. Brown Issues Stay-at-Home Order; COVID-19 Provider Calls
03/18/20: PRN: Clarification NOON start time for today's OHA COVID-19 webinar
03/16/20: PRN: Gov. Kate Brown Announces New Statewide Actions on COVID-19
03/12/20: PRN Gov. Kate Brown Issues Orders on COVID-19
03/11/20: PRN: OHA COVID-19 Temporary Rules
03/06/20: PRN: COVID-19 Testing Guidance

OHA Healthcare Provider COVID-19 Videoconferences

Consistent venues for COVID-19 information sharing.

First and Third Thursdays, 12-1 p.m.: OHA COVID-19 Informational Session for All Providers
Informational Flyer | Archive links to the teleconferences from previous dates

Second and Fourth Thursdays, 12-1:15 p.m.: OHA COVID-19 Learning Session for Clinicians - Part 2 | Project ECHO
Register; requires account creation. | Join without registering.

Clinical Guidance and Treatment Resources

10/26/20: Johns Hopkins University | Highest-Ever US Weekly Case Count
10/23/20: Johns Hopkins University | US Daily Case Count Matches July's
10/23/20: AMA | COVID-19 Inequity in Latinx Communities
10/23/20: Nature Medicine: Impact of Mask Use on US Mortality
10/22/20: FDA Approves Veklury (Remdesivir) for COVID-19 Treatment
10/22/20: OHA | Pandemic's Effect on Oregon Opioid Misuse Unclear
10/21/20: CDC Updates "Close Contact" Definition
10/20/20: CDC | Number of Excess US COVID-19 Deaths
10/19/20: OHA | Revised Face Covering Guidance
10/16/20: OHA | Draft of Oregon's COVID-19 Vaccination Plan
10/16/20: CDC | Race, Ethnicity, and Age Trends in COVID-19 Deaths
10/16/20: AMA | The Urgency of Preventative Care
10/14/20: CDC | What to Know about Vaccine Planning
10/14/20: AMA Video: COVID-19 and Herd Immunity
10/12/20: AMA | COVID-19 and the Latinx Community Report
10/08/20: AMA | FDA Review Process for COVID-19 Vaccine Candidates
10/08/20: NEJM | Hydroxychloroquine in Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients
10/07/20: Virology Journal | Persistence of SARS-CoV-2 on Common Surfaces
10/06/20: FDA Guidance on Vaccine Emergency Use Authorization
10/02/20: AMA | Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Adults
10/02/20: AMA | COVID-19 and the Latinx Community
09/30/20: AMA Urges Vaccinations as Flu Season Clashes with COVID-19 Pandemic
09/25/20: OHA and Lines for Life Launch Behavioral Health Helpline, Outreach Campaign
09/23/20: CDC | COVID-19 Cases Now Highest in People Aged 20-29
09/16/20: Federal Vaccine Distribution Strategy
09/02/20: JAMA | Use of Steroids to Treat Severe COVID-19
08/28/20: JAMA Pediatrics | Children as Carriers of SARS-CoV-2
08/27/20: American Academy of Pediatrics | Report Demonstrates Child, Teen Cases Growing Faster than Adult
08/27/20: AMA | Podcast: Contact: the challenges of scaling up contact tracing
08/19/20: HHS Expands Access to Childhood Vaccines during COVID-19 Pandemic
08/19/20: The Journal of Pediatrics | Pediatric SARS-CoV-2: Clinical Presentation, Infectivity, and Immune Responses
08/18/20: AMA | Why depression, anxiety are prevalent during COVID-19
08/14/20: CDC | Mental Health, Substance Use, and Suicidal Ideation During the COVID-19 Pandemic
08/14/20: CDC | Oregonians' Rate of COVID-19 Exposure
08/12/20: AMA Podcast: The Overdose Epidemic During the Pandemic
08/07/20: Patient Questions about Managing Risk and Wearing Masks
08/07/20: CDC | COVID-19–Associated Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children — United States, March–July 2020
08/07/20: CDC | Hospitalization Rates and Characteristics of Children Aged <18 Years Hospitalized with Laboratory-Confirmed COVID-19 — COVID-NET, 14 States, March 1–July 25, 2020
08/07/20: AMA President Speech: "The Beginning of the End? The Path to a COVID-19 Vaccine"
08/03/20: OHA | Technical Assistance: Alcohol and Opioid Management During the Pandemic
07/24/20: CDC | Prevalence of Underlying Conditions Exposes US Adults to Greater Complications Risk
07/23/20: CDC | Statement on Reopening Schools
07/22/20: CDC | Infected Number May be Much Higher than Reported Cases Number
07/20/20: HHS OCR Guidance on Civil Rights Protections During COVID-19
07/20/20: Study: Children Spreading Coronavirus at Least as Much as Adults
07/14/20: AMA-Yale Program in Addiction Medicine Survey for Physicians with DEA DATA-2000 “X-Waiver”
06/25/20: OHA Brief Report: COVID-19 Epidemic Trends and Projections in Oregon
06/24/20: OHSU Study: Face Coverings May Decrease Respiratory Illness Spread
06/19/20: NEJM Group COVID-19 Treatment Simulations
06/15/20: FDA Revokes Hydroxychloroquine Emergency Use Ruling
- 06/15/20: FDA Letter Revoking Emergency Use Authorization
06/12/20: Population Health Management: Pandemic Makes Chronic Disease Prevention a Priority
06/08/20: OHA REVISED COVID-19 Guidance on Screening and Visitation at Acute Health Care Facilities
06/08/20: HHS: Impact of COVID-19 on African Americans and Other Racial and Ethnic Minorities
06/04/20: AMA: Dr. Fauci: 2021 may see up to 300 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine
06/02/20: AMA: COVID-19 intensifies need for mental health care services
06/02/20: AMA Issue brief: Reports of increases in opioid- related overdose and other concerns during COVID pandemic
05/28/20: AMA Contact Tracing Video
05/27/20: OMA: Mental Health in the Time of COVID-19
05/17/20: OHA to Distribute Remdesivir to Hospitals Statewide
05/15/20: AMA Screening Script for Reopening Practices | Part of A Physician Practice Guide to Reopening
05/14/20: Please complete the OMA's COVID-19 Impact survey.| Version for Physicians and Physician Assistants | Version for Clinic Administrators and Practice Managers
05/13/20: OHA Announces 1st Case of COVID-19-Linked Pediatric Condition
05/09/20: OHA, FDA Guidance Restricts Use of KN95 Respirators
05/08/20: OHA: Oregon sees drop in immunizations during COVID-19 crisis
- 05/08/20: Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Routine Pediatric Vaccine Ordering and Administration — United States, 2020
05/01/20: Gov. Kate Brown Announces COVID-19 Testing and Contact Tracing Plans for Reopening Oregon
05/01/20: OHA Guidance for Clinicians Regarding COVID-19 Testing
04/24/20: FDA Warns Against Chloroquine for COVID-19 Outside Hospitals
- 04/28/20: AMA Communication on FDA Warning Against Chloroquine
04/20/20: OHSU Connected Care Center Hotline: 833-OHSU-CCC (833-647-8222), option 9. Staffed seven days a week, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Doernbecher Children’s Hospital physicians continue to be available to answer questions about children and COVID-19 (888-346-0644).
04/20/20: AMA Opioid Epidemic COVID-19 Microsite
04/17/20: AMA, ASHP, APhA Joint Statement on ordering, prescribing, or dispensing COVID-19 medications
04/16/20: COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions by the OHSU COVID-19 Inquiry Group: Guide to existing recommendations in the setting of rapidly-emerging information. Clinicians should exercise clinical judgement when using this resource.
04/08/20: OHA Guidance on Elective and Non-Urgent Healthcare Procedures
04/08/20: CMS Infection Control Guidance Based on CDC Guidelines to Protect Patients and Healthcare Workers
04/07/20: CMS Recommendations on Non-Emergent, Elective Medical Services
03/31/20: New DEA Buprenorphine Guidance
03/31/20: FAQs for Opioid Use Disorder Prescribing and Dispensing in the COVID-19 Emergency
03/31/20: Sweeping CMS Regulatory Changes to Address Patient Surge
03/30/20: AAFP Checklist to Prepare Physician Offices for COVID-19
03/22/20: Medicare Quality Reporting Waived
03/16/20: Oregon Crisis Care Guidance
03/15/20: CDC Clinical Guidance
03/14/20: Multnomah County: Guidance for small health clinics to prepare for COVID-19
Oregon Psychiatric Access Line (OPAL): free, same-day, phone consultation to primary care providers in Oregon

COVID-19 Testing

Medicare, the Oregon Health Plan, and commercial plans must cover costs associated with COVID-19 testing, including visit costs, with no patient out-of-pocket costs.