Oregon reached another vaccination milestone today: 70% of adults 18 years and older have now received at least one vaccination in advance of the July 4th holiday weekend.
Oregon’s number is based on data reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today, and data in Oregon’s ALERT IIS system, which has not yet been uploaded to the CDC website.
According to the CDC, 2,343,617 adult Oregonians had received at least one dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or a shot of the single-dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine, as of yesterday. That total leaves Oregon 2,206 adult first doses short of 70%. However, Oregon has received reports of an additional 2,900 backlogged doses delivered by pharmacies in Oregon that are not yet reported to CDC. In addition, Oregon reported 1,478 first doses administered yesterday to the CDC earlier today, which have not yet been added to the federal total (a portion of these doses will not count toward Oregon’s adult vaccination target because they were administered to children 12-17 years old). The combination of these additional doses mean Oregon has reached its 70% adult vaccination target.
“The 70% adult vaccination goal means we have a better chance to sustain a safe reopening. The safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines continue to drive down new cases, hospitalizations and deaths in our state. Thank you to everyone who’s been vaccinated and everyone who helped administer these life-saving vaccines,” said Patrick Allen, Director of the Oregon Health Authority. “But COVID-19 hasn’t gone away. It’s our goal to vaccinate eight in 10 people across Oregon, particularly adults in communities of color and other under-vaccinated groups.”
Oregon’s latest vaccine effectiveness data show that more than nine in 10 recent cases, hospitalizations and deaths in Oregon were among people who were unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated.
Oregon now stands 18th in the nation in the percentage of the total population that has been vaccinated. The state reached the 70% adult vaccination goal through the efforts of more than 660 vaccination sites, which were operated by a wide range of health care providers, Tribal partners, Local Public Health Authorities, community based organizations, pharmacies, volunteers, the Oregon National Guard, retired healthcare workers and countless others—all working together to beat back the pandemic.
With adult vaccination rate now more than 70% and the lifting of statewide protections, the state will continue to support vaccination efforts in communities across Oregon. However, local health authorities will be responsible for managing outbreaks of COVID-19 at the local level.
Statewide coordination efforts will continue at OHA, including case investigation and contact tracing support, epidemiological investigations, monitoring of variants and collecting and reporting data. We are now able to move from the statewide response model to one being driven at the local level, in each community and based on local risks.
