Note: On July 27, 2021, in response to a large jump in cases and hospitalizations and new national guidance calling for masking measures to prevent the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant, the Oregon Health Authority recommended universal mask use in public indoor settings throughout the state to protect Oregonians from COVID-19. You can read OHA’s official press release here.
Oregon reopened for business on June 30. Since then, we’ve heard our fellow Oregonians ask how COVID-19 health and safety restrictions have changed in light of reopening and what Oregon residents can expect going forward.
Watch the video below to hear answers from State Health Officer and Epidemiologist Dr. Dean Sidelinger and Oregon OSHA Administrator Michael Wood.
Questions:
7:16 – Can businesses still require face coverings?
7:51 – How is it safe to lift restrictions if children under 12 still can’t get vaccinated?
9:35 – Which types of businesses still need to enforce face coverings and social distancing?
10:47 – Why aren’t we following CDC or WHO guidelines? Vaccinated people are not as contagious, which is not the same as things being “perfectly safe”.
13:46 – If masks aren’t being required in restaurants, butcher shops and other places that handle food, what’s keeping the saliva droplets that spread COVID-19 out of food?
15:07 – Can counties create their own COVID-19 safety and health restrictions?
16:41 – What about healthcare facilities in regards to social distancing in waiting rooms? Can we use less than 6 feet while face masks are worn and there are no acute patients allowed in the clinic?
18:05 – Do group homes with 3 individuals being supported by a DD provider fall into “health care settings”, and if so why?
18:58 – How is “health care employer” defined?
19:50 – If everything is “reopened”, why are we still required to wear masks for transportation and medical appointments?
22:39 – What’s the plan to protect the immunocompromised, children and others who can’t get vaccinated?
24:57 – Could restrictions be put back in place if we see a surge in cases due to the delta variant?
27:12 – In the healthcare setting, are masks required in non-patient areas such as the nurses stations?
28:04 – Are there indicators, for example hospitalizations, that would bring back restrictions? If so, what are they?
30:08 – “Patient care.” Does that include dentists, chiropractors, naturopaths, etc.?
For more information on Oregon’s reopening, check out the blog posts below.