Skip to main content
The Oregon Health Authority today released summary statistics on the worst week yet of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Diagnosed cases increased 14% for the week ending Dec. 6, hospitalizations rose 24% to 494, and deaths totaled 133, up from 86 the previous week.
Although older Oregonians continue to account for the majority of deaths—76% of the 1,045 people who have died are over 70—the age group most likely to become infected are 20- to 29-year-olds, who account for 21.4% of all cases.
The state also announced 170,964 COVID-19 tests were given during the week, with a positivity rate of 8.1%. That number of tests is sharply higher—by about a factor of 3—since the state recently began reporting all tests, rather than just the number of unique individuals who have been tested. Reporting all tests yields a higher number because many people have gotten multiple tests.
Today's count, not included in the numbers above: 1,243 new cases, 30 new deaths, and a hospitalization total that has now reached 580.
