Jackson County Public Health reports 56 new COVID-19 cases as of 12:01 am on January 16, 2021. Additionally, 1 previously reported case was removed, and 1 case was added that had previous reporting dates to the total number of COVID-19 cases in Jackson County. These updates bring the total COVID-19 cases to 6,865.
COVID-19 Deaths
Jackson County Public Health reports 2 new COVID-19 death. This brings the total number of COVID-19 deaths to 84.
Jackson County's 83rd COVID-19 death is a 72-year-old man who died on January 7 at Rogue Regional Medical Center. The patient had underlying health conditions.
Jackson County's 84th COVID-19 death is a 58-year-old woman who tested positive on December 20 and died on January 14 at Three Rivers Medical Center. The patient had underlying health conditions.
COVID-19 Hospitalizations
The number of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 in Region 5 (Jackson and Josephine Counties) is 40, increasing by 2 from the previous day. There are 13 patients in the intensive care unit (ICU), which remains the same from the previous day.
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.
For additional information, visit the Jackson County COVID-19 Data Dashboard at Situation in Jackson County, Oregon webpage. The Oregon Health Authority’s COVID-19 Data Dashboard website does publish Jackson County COVID-19 data.
COVID-19 Vaccine Update
On January 15, Jackson County and Asante provided further details on the drive-through vaccination event to be held at the Jackson County Expo on January 21, 22, and 23. Those details included that the vaccination event would only be available to those in Phase 1A. "Like many others around the United States, we were disappointed to learn that Oregon would not receive the additional vaccine from the federal government allowing states to expand access to the vaccine," stated Dr. Jim Shames, Jackson County Health Officer. "We were hopeful that the additional vaccine supply from the federal level would enable us to include teachers and individuals over 65 years of age in this vaccination event. The news was hard to hear, but it provided the Incident Management Team further guidance that finalized our planning efforts so that we could effectively communicate those details."
Governor Kate Brown held a press conference on January 15, 2021, to address the fact that Oregon would not be receiving a surge in COVID-19 vaccine, which would have allowed Oregon to expand access to the vaccine to educators, school staff, and people over the age of 65. Because Oregon did not receive the surge in vaccine from the federal government and overall receiving fewer doses than promised, the Governor and the state had to develop a new strategy for vaccinating nearly 800,000 educators, school staff, and people over 65 in Oregon.
The new strategy provided a target that Oregon would begin vaccinating educators and school staff starting the week of January 25 and would use a tiered approach to vaccinating individuals 65 and older beginning February 8. Again, these are target dates that depend on Oregon receiving a reliable supply of vaccine from the federal government. Jackson County Public Health will continue working with the Oregon Health Authority, our medical partners, COVID-19 vaccine providers, and other partners on the distribution of the vaccine for these expanded groups.
Patrick Allen, the Oregon Health Authority Director, addressed the notion that Oregon is sitting on thousands of doses of the vaccine. Patrick Allen stated that it is not accurate to say that Oregon has 150,000 or more doses of the COVID-19 vaccine sitting on shelves. It is more accurate to say that those doses have already been allocated to vaccine sites to be administered, vaccines are in the position to be administered, or that doses have been administered but not reported yet. The Oregon Health Authority Director addressed three variables that are causing discrepancies in the vaccine data. The first is that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports the number of doses that have been shipped, not when the state receives the doses of vaccine. Secondly, the vaccine sites have three days to report vaccine data; therefore, there is a slight delay in reporting. Also, there were some issues with data errors or sites' lack of reporting, which the Oregon Health Authority is addressing. Last, most of the vaccine the state has is already allocated to vaccine events, hospitals, public health departments, and other vaccine providers where people are scheduled to receive the vaccine.
Please use the Oregon Health Authority Vaccine Dashboard to report daily vaccine data for the state and counties. This data is updated Monday through Friday by the Oregon Health Authority.
Currently, the vaccine is available to those in Phase 1A. It is highly recommended that if you fall into this phase that you access the vaccine through these providers as soon as possible.
La Clinica, Rogue Community Health, and Mercy Flights are collaborating directly with organizations in Phase 1A to provide the vaccine. They are developing and expanding their process and capacity to vaccinate others in Phase 1A.
Information is rapidly changing; it is best to check the Jackson County COVID-19 Vaccine website for updated information.
Facts about the COVID-19 Vaccine
- Vaccination is the best way to keep yourself, your family, and your community healthy.
- COVID-19 vaccines are more than 94% effective and have undergone rigorous safety testing.
- Vaccination gives us hope that the pandemic will end. Still, in the meantime, we need to continue safety measures to keep the virus from spreading: Wear a mask, physically distance from others, wash your hands, avoid gatherings, and stay home when you’re sick.
Clinical studies showed both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines to be more than 94% effective when both doses are received. Neither vaccine showed serious safety issues and protected people from getting COVID-19 and from getting seriously ill if they did get the virus.
These vaccines were tested in large clinical trials and research studies with tens of thousands of people to make sure they met the safety standards. In fact, both vaccines were tested in many more people than a typical vaccine trail. Many people were recruited to participate in these trials to see how the vaccine offers protection to people of different ages, races, and ethnicities, as well as those with different medical conditions. Every study, every phase and every trial was reviewed by the FDA and a safety board. COVID-19 safety and effectiveness.
Most people do not have serious problems after being vaccinated. Common side effects include your arm may become sore, red, or warm to the touch. These symptoms usually go away on their own within a week. Some people report getting a headache or fever when getting the vaccine. These side effects are a sign that your immune system is doing exactly what it is supposed to do. It is working and building up protection against the disease.
Should people who have recovered from COVID-19 get vaccinated?
Unfortunately, re-infection is possible with COVID-19. Therefore, even if you have already had the virus and recovered, you may still be advised to get a COVID-19 vaccine. According to the CDC, COVID-19 vaccination should be offered to persons regardless of a history of COVID-19 infection, with or without symptoms. They don’t recommend testing to check for prior infection when deciding to get the vaccine. Natural immunity, which is gained from having the infection, varies from person to person. It is still unknown how long natural immunity lasts, though some evidence already indicates that it is not for an extensive period of time.
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