Gov. Kate Brown will lift Oregon’s mask mandate, capacity limits on businesses and social distancing requirements no later than June 30, the governor said Friday, scaling back earlier plans to reopen the state only when 70% of the population is vaccinated against the coronavirus.
“It means, effectively, Oregon is 100% open for business,” Brown said.
The governor’s new plan scales back earlier plans to reopen the state only when 70% of the population is vaccinated against the coronavirus. But in making the announcement, Brown said vaccinations administered to date have prepared Oregon to reopen.
“It is because of this success that we can move Oregon forward, and into the next chapter of this pandemic,” Brown said. “We are ready.”
The state might still adhere to federal guidance mandating masks in specific settings such as airports, public transit and health care settings, Brown said.
The state will reopen sooner if 70% of the population gets vaccinated. An analysis by The Oregonian/OregonLive estimates Oregon won’t reach that threshold until July 7. Oregon Health Authority Director Patrick Allen previously predicted the state would hit that milestone by June 30 in a worst-case scenario.
As of Thursday, 68.9% of Oregonians 18 and older had received at least one shot, with about 35,300 to go to hit the threshold.
The weekly average as of Thursday was about 2,915 first doses to adults administered per day, down from 5,362 a week prior.
The state, health care providers, counties, community organizations and others have pulled out all of the stops in trying to convince Oregonians to get shots. But despite promises of lottery prizes for all those vaccinated, gift cards and continuous outreach campaigns, less and less people are getting shots each day.
SEE STATE AND COUNTY COVID-19 TRENDS
And state data show vaccination rates differ dramatically between counties and different races and ethnicities.
While nearly 60% of whites have received at least a shot, only 42.7% of Latinos and 42.8% of Blacks have. And while nearly three quarters of Washington County residents 16 and older have been jabbed, only about 35% of Lake County residents have.
To solidify her commitment to reopening Oregon, Brown signed an executive order Friday that will rescind five other orders that put restrictions on the state, including authorized mask mandates, Oregon’s county-level risk system and numerous restrictions on businesses.
It’s unclear what the precise rules will be for schools. Teachers and students will be expected to continue to follow regulations on preventing the spread of disease, but the state has yet to issue updated guidance for the upcoming academic year.
Brown’s order does keep in place some of Brown’s emergency powers, which her office said is necessary to retain access to federal help and to allow some flexibility in the state’s work trying to vaccinate Oregonians. The new version of the state of emergency declaration will not allow agencies to put in place new restrictions.
This post will be updated.
Data journalist Mark Friesen contributed to this report.
-- Fedor Zarkhin
503-294-7674; fzarkhin@oregonian.com
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Oregon emergency COVID-19 restrictions will be lifted no later than June 30, Brown says - OregonLive
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