No New Oregon Coronavirus Cases, UW Cancels In-Person Classes

UPDATE (2:07 p.m. PT) – Oregon's count of novel coronavirus cases still stood at three as of Friday morning, according to the Oregon Health Authority.

The COVID-19 virus, a relative of other viruses like SARS, was first identified in Wuhan, China, late last year.

The U.S. death toll from COVID-19 has risen to 15 people, the majority of which have been in the Seattle area.

There are currently 28 pending COVID-19 tests in Oregon and 190 people who are being monitored for symptoms.

The Economic Impact On Chinese-Owned Businesses

Oregon U.S. Democratic Rep. Earl Blumenauer met up with Chinese business owners and community members in Portland Friday for a lunch meeting at Ocean City Restaurant to discuss how the COVID-19 virus has affected businesses, specifically in terms of potential prejudice against Asian businesses.

“We’re seeing evidence that people are overreacting,” Blumenauer said. “There’s a little hint of prejudice, a little bit of ignorance.”

Blumenauer said he brought local community members together to discuss how businesses have been affected and what, if anything, can be done to better inform people how may be acting out of fear of contracting the coronavirus.

Blumenauer said people should be taking common-sense precautions against the virus, such as frequent hand-washing and avoiding people who are sick, “but that doesn’t mean we should retreat. That doesn’t mean that we abandon small, family businesses.”

Neil Lee is president of the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association — a group made up of community leaders from Chinese associations in Portland.

“In the Asian [and Asian-Pacific Islander] community, restaurants are being hit really bad,” Lee said.

Lee said he had 18 Chinese New Years events he was planning to attend. All but two have had their events, and the rest have been canceled.

“Every one of these events has 20 to 30 tables, that’s 200 to 300 people at an event,” Lee said. “And to see all of that go away from these restaurants takes a big hit from them.”

He continued: “It would be very unfortunate if any of these Chinese restaurants were to go out of business because they’re apart of the fabric of the Chinese community. Without them, we’re less of a community.”

University of Washington Closure  

The University of Washington said Friday morning that it will be canceling in-person classes and have students finish classes and finals virtually for the remainder of winter term, beginning Monday.  The closure affects its campuses in Seattle, Tacoma and Bothell.

TriMet Increasing Cleaning

TriMet, the Portland metro area's public transportation agency, announced Thursday that it would be increasing the cleaning of its buses and trains due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.

"Our maintenance teams are now cleaning all touchpoint surfaces nightly, wiping them down with a disinfectant," the agency said in a statement. "This includes the poles, doors and other surfaces people will touch or hold on to as the vehicles move."

Along with its cleaning efforts, TriMet is still encouraging riders to take precautions in order to keep themselves healthy including frequent hand-washing and covering coughs and sneezes.

"We understand that some riders are dependent on transit and may have no other way to get to the doctor or hospital if they are sick," the agency said. "Please call your doctor first before using transit as they may be able to help you without you traveling."

Oregon Still Limited In COVID-19 Testing  

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have loosened federal guidelines for people to access coronavirus testing across the country, but Oregon health leaders announced Thursday that the state lacks the capacity to test large numbers of people.

COVID-19 tests are still limited to people hospitalized with symptoms of a serious viral lung infection and have tested negative for the flu, according to the Oregon Health Authority (OHA).

The Oregon State Public Health Lab has the capacity to process 80 test kits a day, but Tri-County health officer Dr. Jennifer Vines said Thursday that number only accounts for approximately 40 tests per day because each case is tested twice, so health officials are still only prioritizing testing for certain people.

Related: Coronavirus Update: Oregon Numbers Delayed, Washington Cases Increase

Unlike Washington and California, which have multiple commercial and local public test labs, Oregon only conducts COVID-19 tests out of that one lab.

“We’re really looking for people sick enough to need to be admitted to a hospital who have symptoms of viral illness deep into their lungs, which would be like a viral pneumonia,” Vines said.

“We’re also asking that those individuals be tested for influenza first, and if they are negative, then they become candidates for COVID-19 testing.”

Health officials said they’ve had an influx of test requests due to the loosened CDC guidelines. They said they expect the capacity for more testing to increase in the state in the coming weeks.