June 2020 THE CHARBONNEAU VILLAGER 23
Clackamas County announces reopening plans
By SAM STITES
With state approval, county became largest
to reopen in phase one
With approval from Gov. Kate Brown’s office
and the Oregon Health Authority Friday, May
22, Clackamas County became the largest county
in the state and first in the metro area to reopen
under phase-one conditions Saturday, May 23.
Approval from the state came shortly after the
Clackamas County’s Board of Commissioners voted
unanimously Tuesday, May 19, to approve the
county’s phase-one reopening plan with minor
amendments.
Staff from the county’s emergency operations
walked elected officials through the plan, including
Disaster Management Director Nancy Bush,
County Public Health Operations Manage Philip
Mason-Joyner and Public Health Officer Dr. Sarah
Present.
Amendments to the reopening plan suggested by
the commissioners centered around using
campsites within the county as isolation facilities.
A letter, sent to the Oregon Health Authority and
Gov. Kate Brown, was signed by Board Chair Jim
Bernard and County Administrator Gary Schmidt.
Phase-one guidelines provide for the reopening of
businesses such as restaurants, bars, personal
services, shopping centers and gyms.
According to staff, Clackamas County is meeting
most of the state’s seven guidelines that counties
have to meet or provide plans for ramping up to be
approved for reopening. Those include a declining
percentage of emergency department visits for
COVID-19-like illnesses, and one less than the
historic average for flu at the same time of year;
the ability to administer COVID-19 testing at a rate
of 30 per 10,000 people per week and maintain a
certain number of testing sites to accommodate
their population; having a minimum of 15 contact
tracers for every 100,000 people and being prepared
to trace 95% of all new cases within 24 hours;
having hotel rooms for people who test positive and
can’t self-isolate; adherence to statewide guidelines
to protect employees and consumers; the ability to
accommodate a 20% increase in suspected or
confirmed cases compared to when the governor’s
executive order was issued; and having a 30-day
supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) at
all large hospitals, and a 14-day supply at small and
rural hospitals.
According to Mason-Joyner, Clackamas County
has seen a decline in severely ill patients seeking
hospital care for COVID-related illness and
symptoms, but as the county moves into phase one,
they expect a small influx in hospitalizations and
even deaths.
The county is also meeting the minimum testing
requirements required by the Oregon Health
Authority, which is 1,245 per week. Clackamas
County is currently at 2,234 tests conducted each
week.
Part of the plan includes making sure the county
also has contracts in place for rapid response
testing teams that can go out, if warranted, in
congregate settings such as long-term care
facilities or the county jail. Mason-Joyner told the
commissioners that data is showing the county’s
Latinx population is at high risk for severe illness
linked to COVID-19, many of whom are essential
workers on farms, food-processing facilities and
other service industries.
The contract-tracing portion of the reopening
guidelines have perhaps been one of the most
opaque pieces of governor’s criteria. Contact
tracing is the practice of investigating people who
have been contacted by an infected person.
How it works is Clackamas County Public
Health’s Infectious Disease Control and Prevention
Program receives lab reports of confirmed cases
and contacts the infected person. They then
interview them and provide public health
consultation and guidance. They also identify all of
those who have been in close contact with them,
then interview and connect with those people as
well to try to prevent spread.
On siting of isolation facilities, the county has
identified six different locations to house
individuals experiencing homelessness who need
to self-isolate for 14 days due to COVID-19, or any
other individual needing isolation such as migrant
workers or those in recovery housing.
Those sites include the Collins Conference and
Retreat Center in Eagle Creek, The Grove Camp &
Retreat in Canby, SnoozInn-Wilsonville, the Best
Western-Rivershore Hotel in Oregon City, Mt.
Hood Kiwanis Camp in Government Camp and the
North Clackamas Parks Complex in Milwaukie.
In terms of hospital capacity, Clackamas
County’s four local hospitals all provided letters of
attestation that the county meets the criteria for
reopening and are prepared to handle a potential
surge in cases that will assuredly be seen once
metro counties begin reopening.
Clackamas County was the first county in
Oregon to declare an emergency on Feb. 28 and
began shutting down county operations March 17.
County Chair Jim Bernard told his fellow
commissioners that he intends for this reopening
plan to be paired with critical messaging around
the fact that it’s everyone’s responsibility to keep
each other safe by wearing masks in public when
applicable, continuing to wash hands and practice
social distancing.
“It’s imperative we continue this... it could get
out of control and we could lose a lot of lives, cost
the taxpayers a lot of money, and these folks have
worked really hard to keep this curve flat and
protect the citizens of Clackamas County,” Bernard
said.
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