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DATA: Covid tests, new cases decline in Marion County following widespread wildfires

Davalee Meade, a paramedic with Woodburn Ambulance Service administers a COVID-19 test during a free drive-through testing clinic on Tuesday, August 25. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)

The number of Marion County residents getting tested for Covid plunged in September following widespread wildfires, leading to a drop in total cases of the virus reported.

So far in September, the county has recorded 864 new cases of the virus, compared with 1,131 in the first 28 days of August. That’s a 24% decrease in new Covid cases. The number of tests decreased 22% over the same period, according to a Salem Reporter analysis of Marion County data.

Still, the decrease in cases hasn’t led to a decrease in hospitalizations. Marion County recorded 58 residents hospitalized with the virus from Sept. 1-28, the same number as from Aug. 1-28. Polk County does not publish daily hospitalization counts, and the state does not publish numbers by county.

(Graphic by Rachel Alexander/Salem Reporter)

(Graphic by Rachel Alexander/Salem Reporter)

(Graphic by Rachel Alexander/Salem Reporter)

Fewer cases brings Marion County closer to returning students to schools, but the numbers are still far higher than Gov. Kate Brown’s guidelines allow. As of Sept. 13, Marion County was each week reporting twice the number of cases allowed for kindergarten through third grade to reopen, and six times the number to resume in-person school for all students.

The county’s positive test rate remains virtually unchanged at about 10% for both August and September, suggesting the virus is as widespread as ever. The county must have no more than 5% of tests positive for the virus for three consecutive weeks before schools can resume with classroom instruction.

Polk County continues to report a lower rate of Covid cases and lower test positivity than Marion County. The week of Sept. 13, Polk County recorded 22 new cases of Covid. That’s low enough to resume kindergarten through third grade in-person if the county sees similar rates for three weeks in a row. Polk County’s test positivity was 5.6%.

(Graphic by Rachel Alexander/Salem Reporter)

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Contact reporter Rachel Alexander: [email protected] or 503-575-1241.

Rachel Alexander is Salem Reporter’s managing editor. She joined Salem Reporter when it was founded in 2018 and covers city news, education, nonprofits and a little bit of everything else. She’s been a journalist in Oregon and Washington for a decade. Outside of work, she’s a skater and board member with Salem’s Cherry City Roller Derby and can often be found with her nose buried in a book.