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April 22, 2021
Getting closer to equity, access and inclusion
“This is a lot of firsts,” said Senior Pastor Wendell Robinson of Mt. Olivet Baptist Church before sitting down to get his vaccination in the church’s Family Life Center.
It was the first day of the first vaccination clinic at Portland’s first African American Baptist Church. The clinics, a partnership between Providence, Medical Teams International and Mt. Olivet will be repeated every two weeks as long as there are people needing to be vaccinated.
“We are a perpetual presence in the community, and it’s important for us to do things that are sustainable,” says Pastor Robinson. “When it comes to health care and other issues, decisions are made on behalf of our community, often without checking with those who lead. But we see the tide turning, there’s more receptivity to offering us a seat at the table.”
The clinics are a case in point. Executive Pastor, Edward Williams, who organized the clinics, knew that he didn’t want vaccinations for the community to be a one-time event. “A one-day clinic can create panic and anxiety. Folks have a limited chance of getting a shot. That’s not broadly inclusive or equitable. Why should we subject our people to that kind of trauma?”
Instead, he wanted folks to have regular, predictable access at a familiar spot in their community. Providence, he said, was very open to this idea. “It’s a combined effort to get closer to equity, access and inclusion. We’ve taken talk and turned it into action. I take my hat off to the folks at Providence for doing this.”
Word about the clinics went out to the Mt. Olivet congregation, partner churches and spread through the community. For this particular clinic, people signed up online or went old school and made a phone call. About six hundred people were vaccinated over three days.
“Love looks like something,” said Pastor Robinson, after getting his vaccination. “This is a new way of loving our neighbors.”
Click on the image below to see a video of Pastor Robinson at Mt. Olivet Baptist Church.
Getting your vaccine: Know before you go
If you have a vaccination appointment coming up, you may be wondering what it will be like and how to prepare for it.
Here’s what you can expect at the appointment:
- You, and the person who is vaccinating you, will need to wear a face covering that covers your mouth and nose.
- The shot will be given in your shoulder so it’s helpful to wear a short sleeve shirt.
- The vaccine is free.
- You are not required to show identification or to give them a social security number.
- If you have health insurance, you may be asked to show your insurance card so that the clinic can bill the administration fee to them.
- After getting a COVID-19 vaccine, you will be monitored on site for at least 15 minutes. Learn more about COVID-19 vaccines and rare severe allergic reactions.
- You should receive a vaccination card with the CDC logo on it. Hold onto that card. You may also want to take a picture of your vaccination card in case you misplace it.
- Schedule your second dose from the same site where you received your first.
Learn more on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) webpage.
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OHA, CDC investigating potential adverse event following Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccination
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is investigating a report of an Oregon death that was submitted to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) on April 18.
VAERS is a national vaccine safety monitoring system overseen by the CDC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). It serves as a place for doctors, nurses, vaccine manufacturers and the general public to submit information about any health problems that occur after vaccination — even if the problem can’t be tied for certain to the vaccination itself.
The reported death pertains to a woman in her 50s, who received the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine before the CDC and FDA recommended pause was issued earlier this month. She developed a rare but serious blood clot less than two weeks after her vaccination.
It is important to note that until this investigation is complete, it cannot be determined whether her death was related to the vaccine.
Health care providers are required to report any serious adverse event following vaccination to VAERS in accordance with the emergency use authorization (EUA) for COVID-19 vaccines. It is up to CDC and the FDA, however, to conclude whether a death was caused by the vaccination itself.
As the investigation continues, the CDC and OHA will continue to provide updates on any developments that may transpire.
Read the full OHA press release here.
Oregon reports 993 new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases, 1 new death
There is one new COVID-19 related death in Oregon, raising the state’s death toll to 2,467, the Oregon Health Authority reported at 12:01 a.m. today.
Oregon Health Authority reported 993 new confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19 as of 12:01 a.m. today, bringing the state total to 178,110.
Vaccinations in Oregon
Today, OHA reported that 48,387 new doses of COVID-19 vaccinations were added to the state immunization registry. Of this total, 28,535 doses were administered on April 21 and 19,852 were administered on previous days but were entered into the vaccine registry on April 21. Cumulative daily totals can take several days to finalize.
The seven-day running average is now 34,328 doses per day.
Oregon has now administered a total of 1,398,442 doses of Pfizer, 1,172,051 doses of Moderna and 91,160 doses of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines. As of today, 1,091,777 people have completed a COVID-19 vaccine series. There are 1,658,130 who have had at least one dose.
To date, 1,683,045 doses of Pfizer, 1,432,000 doses of Moderna and 215,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines have been delivered to sites across Oregon.
These data are preliminary and subject to change.
OHA’s dashboards provide regularly updated vaccination data, and Oregon’s dashboard has been updated today.
OHA finds small number of data entry errors in reported vaccine doses
Oregon Health Authority has identified that a small number of Johnson & Johnson vaccine doses were recorded in the ALERT IIS System on and after April 13. OHA conducted an investigation and contacted all of the sites that reported submitting three or more doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine since the pause was issued April 13. All the sites that OHA contacted reported that these reports were data entry errors, and none of the sites had administered the vaccine. All told, OHA has determined that data entry errors were a factor at eight sites, accounting for 121 of the 159 total doses recorded.
As we continue to receive additional reports of Johnson and Johnson doses administered while the pause is in effect, we will clarify with vaccine providers whether or not these are data entry errors and will continue to ask providers to clarify these reports.
OHA is currently working with sites that have continued to report administering Johnson & Johnson vaccine doses during the pause to investigate why these doses have been reported. Consequently, the vaccine administration numbers for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine will change as this work continues. OHA is reiterating to partners that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have recommended a pause on Johnson & Johnson vaccine administrations as they conduct a federal review of the vaccine.
Cases and deaths
The new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases reported today are in the following counties: Baker (14), Benton (24), Clackamas (116), Clatsop (4), Columbia (14), Coos (6), Crook (12), Curry (2), Deschutes (57), Douglas (5), Grant (1), Hood River (5), Jackson (46), Jefferson (6), Josephine (17), Klamath (54), Lake (2), Lane (54), Lincoln (7), Linn (34), Malheur (2), Marion (109), Morrow (1), Multnomah (206), Polk (20), Tillamook (1), Umatilla (8), Union (2), Wasco (16), Washington (128) and Yamhill (20).
Oregon’s 2,467th COVID-19 death is a 67-year-old man from Linn County who tested positive on April 21 and died on April 21 at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center. He had underlying conditions.
Note: Updated information is available for Oregon’s 2,461st death, which was originally reported as an 82-year-old man from Douglas County. The man was actually 61 years old. OHA regrets the error.
Note: Due to a delay in laboratory reporting, OHA received a large quantity of ~13,800 negative electronic laboratory reports (ELRs) on April 21, 2021. The reports are from March 7 to April 20. As a result, daily ELR totals are higher and percent positivity is lower for April 21 than anticipated.
COVID-19 hospitalizations
The number of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 across Oregon is 283, which is 11 more than yesterday. There are 69 COVID-19 patients in intensive care unit (ICU) beds, which is four more than yesterday.
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.
