Click here for updates on this story
PORTLAND, OR (KPTV) — Nine Oregon counties begin a two-week pause on social activities starting Wednesday, including pausing indoor visits to long-term care facilities.
It was just last week the Department of Human Services started allowing limited indoor visits at long-term care facilities if certain criteria were met.
“It was hard at first, but we’ve kind of gotten used to it,” Rosemary Savage said about the COVID-19 restrictions this year.
She and her husband George Savage Jr. live in Bonaventure at Keizer Station and haven’t seen their children or grandchildren in the same way they used to.
“Maybe once a week they’ll drop by and hand us something outside where we’re both wearing masks and staying six feet apart so, we try to see them once a week, and we talk to them on the phone,” Rosemary said.
They’re staying optimistic and grateful to have each other, but the Director of Operations at Bonaventure Jeremiah Gray said not everyone is able to take time without visitors in such stride.
“The residents are living in a world where they don’t know when they’re gonna get to see their loved ones again. It’s on again off again, and now we’re talking two weeks where it’s off,” Gray said.
The governor’s two-week pause starting Wednesday for nine counties includes pausing long-term care facility visits that take place inside, urging businesses to have employees work from home as much as possible, reducing restaurant capacity and other indoor activities to 50 people, and limiting social gatherings to the same household or if not, no more than six people.
When it comes to care facilities, the Oregon Health Authority says the goal is to protect the most vulnerable Oregonians who have the highest COVID-19 fatality rate and the greatest risk of community spread getting into facilities.
But Gray said the indoor pause is frustrating for them since people can still leave or have outdoor visits.
“We could actually make the visit to the suite safe and provide personal protective equipment we can screen that individual we can sanitize the apartment when they’re done,” he said. “Yet you can go out in the car and visit with someone well within six feet potentially bring COVID back into the community.”
He went on to say, “The one area we can control, we’re being told no, you can’t control that, we’re going to let it go out here where you have no control over what’s happening.”
We reached out to DHS on those concerns, but they weren’t immediately able to get back to us with their latest policies. We will update this story when they do.
Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.
Regulators authorized AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine for use in adults throughout the European Union on Friday, amid criticism the bloc is not moving fast enough to vaccinate its population.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A former FBI lawyer was sentenced to probation for altering an email that the Justice Department relied on during its surveillance of an aide to President Donald Trump during the Russia investigation.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Democratic Gov. Tony Evers lashed out Friday at rival Republicans who tried to repeal his statewide mask mandate, saying killing the order would be a ridiculous move comparable to abolishing speed limits.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — As some conservatives in South Carolina celebrated getting a bill that would ban almost all abortions in the state past a legislative barrier and likely becoming law, they said they are not finished trying to end all abortions.
A Moscow court on Friday put the brother and several allies of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny under house arrest for two months as authorities sought to stymie more protests over the jailing of the top Kremlin foe.