Thursday, April 30
The University of Oregon announced Thursday that the registration deadline for fall term is postponed indefinitely until the university finishes its planning.
Due to the historic number of Oregonians being unemployed as a result of COVID-19 social distancing orders, organizers have begun calling for rent strikes.
Lane County Public Health announced at its press conference Thursday that 31 patients recovered from COVID-19 and there were no new cases.
LCPH is currently doing 149 tests per day and wants to raise daily tests to 500, spokesperson Jason Davis said, encouraging people with mild symptoms to get tested. He also said that LCPH will only hold press conferences on Tuesdays and Thursdays starting next week.
Regarding reopening Lane County, Davis said LCPH can make a recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners, which can then seek the state’s approval. He advised that, regardless of whether or not restrictions are lifted, people stay at home, wear masks, wash their hands, cover their coughs and stick to small gatherings.
Wednesday, April 29
On Wednesday, UO extended its deadline for admitted students to accept their offers of enrollment to Sept. 1, as opposed to the standard May 1 date.
The ASUO Legal Student Services program and ASUO Office of Student Advocacy are still providing legal assistance for UO students.
At the LCPH press conference Wednesday, Davis said that 30 individuals recovered from COVID-19, 18 were being monitored for recovery, there was nobody hospitalized being treated for it and two individuals total had died. The majority of testing in Lane County was through PeaceHealth and the McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center, he said.
“We have increased our capacity locally, but we’re not seeing the number of tests coming in,” Davis said. LCPH is looking to increase testing numbers in the county, he said, advising members of the public to call their medical providers and consider getting tested if they feel symptoms of COVID-19.
The last — and 15th — confirmed case in Lane County was contracted on April 17 and the patient is expected to recover by early May, he said.
“That would put us, if we don’t get any new cases, at that zero mark,” Davis said. “That really depends on no new cases being identified, and with that encouragement that we do more testing, we do expect to see more cases roll in.”
Tuesday, April 28
UO announced on Tuesday that it is suspending travel-based programs, including study abroad, through August 14 due to the worldwide Level 3 travel warning from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Tuesday was the final day that Oregon voters could update their mailing address or register for the primary election on May 19, when the primary elections for the president, senate, house of representative, mayor, city council and measures will be held.
Many seniors graduating this year are struggling “to cope with the absence of an in-person commencement ceremony this spring,” which was scrapped due to COVID-19 concerns.
LCPH announced at a press conference on Tuesday that more than half of all patients with confirmed cases in Lane County had recovered from COVID-19, and there was no increase in the number of cases since Monday.
Mo Young, the equity and access coordinator for Lane County, said at the press conference that Latinx people make up 13% of Oregonians but 25% of COVID-19 cases. Latinx people are also less than 10% of Lane County residents, he said, but make up 22% of cases in the county.
David Saez, the executive director of Centro Latino Americano, said the organization conducted phone calls to check in with Latinx community members. It found that the top concern, affecting 67% of families, regarded losing jobs and income, the second-most common concern — 60% of families — was being unable to cover rent and the third-most common was food, for 50% of families.
Monday, April 27
A local group called “The Seamsters” gathered Eugene residents to make over 19,000 homemade masks for healthcare workers.
Friday, April 24
UO will hold a virtual commencement ceremony for seniors graduating this year on the original date of June 20, 2020, as well as offer seniors the chance to join next spring’s graduating class in-person in their commencement.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, grocery workers in Eugene are dealing with “increased cleaning regiments, social distancing responsibilities and stress associated with working in vulnerable conditions.”
Thursday, April 23
UO students are working to navigate their new reality of remote learning as they find “different ways to balance online courses while maintaining self-care in a time of uncertainty and stress.”
LCPH said at a press conference last Friday that it confirmed a case through contact tracing, and the patient was a woman in her 40s who is medically stable and recovering at her home in rural Lane County. Davis also announced another case, a woman in her 70s who was recovering at home in the Eugene-Springfield area. There were 50 cases total in Lane County, he said.
The Lane County Non-Emergency COVID-19 Call Center’s hours will be reduced starting on Saturday, April 25, he said.
Duncan Baumgarten, Bruno Crolla, Makenzie Elliott, Isabel Lemus Kristensen, Jack Forrest, C. Francis O’Leary and Carrington Powell contributed reporting to this story.
