Joe Conchelos aka Joe Berzerk: Fishing boat captain and TikTok star

We recently talked with Joe about COVID-19’s effects on the fishing industry, vaccination and TikTok fame. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.  I’m the captain of a commercial fishing boat here in Newport. I fish squid and crab and tuna. When we got hit with COVID it was devastating to the industry. A lot of our […]

More than 1,000 people vaccinated at pilot event in Morrow County

In late March, the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and Morrow County Public Health co-hosted a pilot vaccination event in Boardman for agricultural workers. Migrant and seasonal farmworkers became eligible for vaccination in 22 counties on March 22 and across all of Oregon on March 29. “This event helped save lives,” said Jorge Martinez Zapata, OHA’s […]

Federally Qualified Health Centers can vaccinate anyone they serve

As of March 26, all of Oregon’s COVID-19 vaccine-enrolled Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) can vaccinate anyone — regardless of whether they are outside the state’s currently eligible groups — to ensure the COVID-19 vaccines are distributed equitably to all people in Oregon. Oregon’s FQHCs reach people who might not otherwise have access to health […]

Welcome news on vaccine eligibility: What you need to know

Today, we are excited to announce changes to Oregon’s vaccine eligibility schedule based on new information about increased allocation from the federal government. As of now, about 58 percent of Oregonians age 65 and older have been vaccinated. We are on a trajectory to vaccinate more than seven out of 10 by March 29, which […]