Oregon Gov. Kate Brown said Monday that all bars and restaurants will be restricted to carry-out and delivery only and gatherings of more than 25 people will be suspended to slow the spread of COVID-19.
“In a global pandemic, days are like weeks and every single hour changes,” Brown said. “The actions we take today will save lives.”
Statewide events and gatherings of more that 25 people will be canceled via executive order beginning Tuesday, and Brown urged Oregonians to avoid gatherings of 10 or more people. Essential places, like workplaces, grocery stores, pharmacies and retail stores will be exempt from the order, Brown said. Brown said they are still determining whether public schools would be exempt from the four-week cancellation, with an announcement said to be made in the coming days.
The measures enacted via executive order will last for at least four weeks, Brown said.
Restaurants, bars and establishments selling food and drinks will be restricted to carry-out and delivery only, with no on-site consumption. Food service in essential places like hospitals and workplaces will be exempt, Brown said.
“I am also urging all other businesses to evaluate your practices to accommodate social distancing measures,” Brown said. “Basically, can your business do the equivalent of restaurant take-out? If you cannot do that, I strongly urge you to close your doors to customers, temporarily.”
Any establishments found not complying with the measures relating to social distancing will be subject to a Class C misdemeanor, established by Oregon State of Emergency statutes. A Class C misdemeanor is punishable by up to 30 days in jail and/or a fine of over $1,000, according to Oregon law.
Brown announced she was convening a Coronavirus economic advisory council, “to mitigate the impacts of this action and any others that may adversely affect our economy.” Brown said that the council was considering all possible tools, including making requests to the state legislature and federal government. Brown said that a report would be made available in the coming days.
Brown declared, per a request from Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, an abnormal market disruption “regarding essential items like hand sanitizer and toilet paper.” Brown said that there were no plans to ration resources at that time.
Brown said that she assembled two command groups: “one to manage the healthcare system’s resources, and the other to manage our state resources.” She activated a COVID-19 healthcare system response joint task force, building on a combined effort of metro area hospitals, the Oregon Health Authority and local public health officials, meeting “to address capacity issues.”
She said that metro hospitals would be acting as “one unified hospital system for the treatment of COVID-19,” with a centralized coordinated center for managing hospital bed inventory. Brown said that hospital bed capacity would be expanded in non-hospital settings. OHA Director Patrick Allen said that there are approximately 6,000 licensed hospital beds in Oregon. OHA Chief Medical Officer Dr. Dana Hargunani said that planning was already underway for the possibility of pop-up hospitals.
The State Unified Command Emergency Response Organizational Structure, an incident management structure similar to a Cascadia earthquake response, has been activated by the state of Oregon, as well, “fully integrating the Oregon Health Authority’s public response efforts with the office of emergency management efforts to minimize any disruption to critical services in Oregon.”
“I know that Oregonians are some of the most resourceful people in the country,” Brown said, “and in times of crisis, we come together and support each other. I’m asking you to do that now. Isolation from our friends and neighbors is the only way to flatten the curve of transmission and get Oregon through to the other side.”
