Coronavirus updates, Wednesday: Heart disease main underlying condition in COVID-19 deaths – The Register-Guard

Other news: Oregon reports two new COVID-19 deaths, 61 new COVID-19 cases ; Oregon begins furloughing workers, slow bounce back expected; state eases Corporate Activity Tax requirements

SALEM Oregon health officials have reported that most, if not all, the roughly 100 people who died in the state from the coronavirus had underlying health conditions. Now they are reporting what those conditions were, with cardiovascular disease topping the list.

Almost 60% of those who died had heart disease as an underlying condition, the Oregon Health Authority reported late Tuesday, the first time the agency drilled down on the data in its weekly report.

If a person had smoked before and quit, that was also listed as an underlying condition, and 25% of those who died were in that category. However, only 1.4% of those who died were current smokers.

In Oregon, the second-highest underlying factor in fatalities was neurological or neurodevelopmental issues. Neurological disorders include epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, and cerebrovascular diseases including stroke, multiple sclerosis and Parkinsons disease.

A person who died may have had more than one underlying condition. Other conditions listed were diabetes, 33%; lung disease, 29%; renal disease, 25%; and 18% with compromised immune systems.

The Associated Press

State eases Corporate Activity Tax requirements

The Oregon Department of Revenue has eased the threshold amount for businesses making estimated payments for the Corporate Activity Tax.

The revised law enacted by Gov. Kate Brown allows the department to change the threshold for making estimated tax payments. Under the change, businesses that will owe less than $10,000 will not required to make quarterly estimated tax payments during 2020.

Officials announced Wednesday that the department will not assess penalties for underestimated quarterly payments or for not making a quarterly payment if businesses dont have the financial ability to make the estimated payment.

If businesses know theyll owe $10,000 or more in annual CAT in 2020 and can pay, they should make estimated quarterly payments, officials said.

If businesses have been impacted by COVID-19 and are finding it difficult to calculate or pay an estimated quarterly payment, they should keep documentation showing:

Their inability to pay a quarterly payment because of insufficient funds due to COVID-19.

Their inability to reasonably calculate a quarterly payment or annual tax liability due to their business being impacted by COVID-19.

That the taxpayer is unclear at this time whether the business will owe Corporate Activity Tax in April 2020 due to COVID-19 impacts, after taking into consideration exclusions and subtractions in the law.

Businesses uncertain about their economic future due to the COVID-19 crisis or those that have been closed during this crisis and have no ability to determine that they will owe a tax this year, wont be penalized, according to officials.

Salem Statesman Journal

Masks to be required to enter Costco stores

Costco shoppers are being asked to wear a mask or face covering beginning Monday.

"To protect our members and employees, effective May 4, all Costco members and guests must wear a mask or face covering that covers the mouth and nose at all times while at Costco," officials announced on the company website.

Children under the age of 2 or individuals who can't wear a mask due to a medical condition will not be subject to the requirement.

The company cautions that the mask policy is not a substitute for social distancing efforts and that shoppers should continue to allow adequate distance while in the store.

Salem Statesman Journal

GDP fell 4.8% in first quarter as consumer spending tumbled

The U.S. economy, largely shut down by the coronavirus pandemic, turned in its worst performance in more than a decade early this year, but the dismal showing reflects just a sliver of the damage to come.

The nations gross domestic product, the value of all goods and services produced in the U.S., contracted at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.8% in the January-March period as both consumer and business spending fell sharply, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. It marked the first drop in output since early 2014 and the steepest since late 2008 during the depths of the Great Recession.

The first-quarter contraction likely reflects only part of the actual slide because initial estimates typically miss some data and such gaps are accentuated during big economic shifts, Goldman Sachs says. Also, the firm says, many businesses were closed and couldnt be surveyed.

USA Today

Fauci: US could have 'a bad fall and a bad winter'

A second wave of the new coronavirus is "inevitable," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Tuesday. But how the U.S. responds before it comes will determine how the country fares. "If by that time we have put into place all of the countermeasures that you need to address this, we should do reasonably well. If we dont do that successfully, we could be in for a bad fall and a bad winter," Fauci said.

Fauci said the latest coronavirus models predict more than 70,000 will die in the U.S. during the first wave. If the U.S. can create an efficient system of "identifying, isolating and contact tracing" as states begin to reopen, the model will likely hold true, Fauci said. "If we are unsuccessful or prematurely try to open up, and we have additional outbreaks that are out of control, (deaths) could be much more than that," Fauci said. "It could be a rebound to get us right back in the same boat that we were in a few weeks ago."

USA Today

Remdesivir sees positive trial results as possible coronavirus treatment

Pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences on Wednesday reported potentially encouraging results from a trial for remdesivir, an antiviral drug that's being tested as a treatment for the coronavirus. The company said remdesivir produced "similar improvement" in patients over a 10-day treatment plan compared with a five-day treatment plan and that it recorded "no new safety" issues among hospitalized patients who "well-tolerated" the treatment in the study.

"The study demonstrates the potential for some patients to be treated with a 5-day regimen, which could significantly expand the number of patients who could be treated with our current supply of remdesivir," said Merdad Parsey, chief medical officer of Gilead Sciences, in a statement.

The initial results released Wednesday come after a report two weeks ago by the medical site STAT suggested potentially positive results in one of its remdesivir trials.

USA Today

Report: CDC data show virus deaths may be far higher than reported

New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that the number of deaths in the United States from the new coronavirus may be far higher than what states are reporting, a New York Times report says. Looking at the CDC data, the Times found that deaths surged 50% higher than normal in seven states from March 8 through April 11. However, the official number of COVID-19 deaths did not account for all those deaths in the surge.

There was a gap of about 9,000 between the coronavirus death toll and the official count of unexpected deaths during that time period in the seven states: New York, New Jersey, Michigan, Massachusetts, Illinois, Maryland and Colorado. It's possible that the gap can be accounted for by a mix of both undercounting of coronavirus deaths and a surge in deaths from other causes, the Times reports.

However, public health officials have warned that the number of deaths and total coronavirus cases may be undercounted as testing capacity still lags in many states and some people sickened with the new virus die outside of a hospital.

USA Today

California considers starting next academic year in July

Gov. Gavin Newsom said California's schools could return possibly as early as late July or early August to begin the next academic year. Starting the next school year early could make up for "a learning loss" as children have been at home and working virtually on school assignments, Newsom said.

The governor said no decision has been made, but physical and environmental changes would be needed at the state's schools to reopen safely. The process of reopening schools across the country will be challenging, educators say with cramped space, limited funding and vague guidelines from health officials. Beyond blanket health recommendations, schools will have to figure out the rest by themselves.

USA Today

Oregon begins furloughing workers, slow bounce back expected

Facing steep budget shortfalls, the state of Oregon has taken its first steps in furloughing workers in order to save money, among the few states in America to do so to date.

A state economist predicted that Oregons leaders will have to grapple with "balancing limited revenues with increased need for programs to help Oregonians" impacted by the economic shutdown to stem the coronavirus pandemic.

"Things wont bounce back overnight" after the restrictions are lifted, Josh Lehner, who is helping produce Oregons economic and revenue forecast, said on a webcast Friday.

Read the story here.

Virus costing Oregon State University millions, but enrollment holding steady

Oregon State University has lost about $38 million in revenue from athletics, housing and dining, conferences and other auxiliary programs since the coronavirus pandemic struck, even though enrollment is holding surprisingly steady.

Steve Clark, OSUs vice president for university relations and marketing, said thats how much revenues from auxiliary units are down during the universitys spring term compared to the same time last year.

That includes lost income from a mass exodus of students from campus housing and revenue sharing from canceled conference and NCAA tournaments.

There may be more bad news ahead. With so many Oregonians out of work due to virus-related business shutdowns, state income tax revenues are projected to take a sharp drop, which could translate into reductions in state financial support for higher education.

Read the full story here.

Lane County Public Health daily brief

Lane County Public Health announced no new COVID-19 cases Wednesday. The total of known cases in the county has been 50 since last Thursday.

Lane County Public Health Spokesman Jason Davis said 3,322 tests have been administered on county residents. Thirty people have recovered from the disease. Two have died. Another 18 remain sick at this time, Davis said.

Davis said the availability of testing in Lane County has increased to the point where people with mild symptoms, who may have been denied a test in past week, should contact their health care providers about getting one.

Davis said hospitals now should be more liberal about who they test.

The most recent onset of symptoms in a Lane County COVID-19 case was April 17, meaning that person probably was contagious starting April 15, Davis said. That person was tested April 23 and likely caught it from their spouse.

If no new cases emerge, all known local patients should be recovered by early May, Davis said. Davis said its likely more cases will be found now that testing has increased, but he said the hope is the number of severe cases is minimal.

Springfield library, museum extend closure to June

The Springfield Public Library and the Springfield Museum will be closed through May 31.

On Monday, the Springfield Public Library announced the extended closure on its Twitter page. The city of Springfield replied to the tweet, announcing that the museum will be closed to that same date.

The library was originally supposed to reopen Tuesday, April 28, but this was changed because of extended closures across the state caused by COVID-19.

Washington psychiatric hospital staff say virus tests unsafe

SEATTLE Workers who had been exposed to the coronavirus at Washington states largest psychiatric hospital were herded into a small building to be tested. Inside, few wore masks. They were given test kits by people without gloves and told to swirl a swab inside their noses.

The method was designed only for people showing symptoms, but the staffers said none of them did. Many told The Associated Press that the flawed testing process this month likely produced inaccurate results and exposed them to the virus again.

"I absolutely feel it was a misuse of the testing materials," said Dr. Lauren Smith, a forensic psychologist at the hospital. "In addition to that, the manner in which they did it put us all at risk."

The Associated Press

California students might begin school year in July, Gov. Gavin Newsom says

July, that most sacred of months for students on summer vacation, may become part of the school calendar in California because of the coronavirus.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday's he's concerned about a "learning loss'' for state students because the academic year was interrupted in March as the virus spread. Instruction continued remotely in an uneven fashion, but in-person teaching has been declared over for the school year.

To compensate, Newsom suggested the next academic year -- which for California public schools typically begins around the third week of August -- start sometime in July or early August, provided it's safe.

"We might want to consider getting that school year moved up a little bit,'' Newsom said. That learning loss is very real."

California is still under a stay-at-home order and Newsom said "meaningful modifications" to it could be made within weeks.

USA Today

'They're playing Russian roulette': As states reopen, experts warn of risks

Dozens of states have decided to reopen businesses and have established a number of conditions for restarting, but public health experts question their ability to monitor and handle the inevitable increase in cases that will follow.

If the surge is strong enough, some may have to reimpose the social distancing restrictions that devastated their economies, making for a herky-jerky approach to recovery.

""I think theyre playing Russian roulette. Theyre hoping obviously that reopening the states is not going to lead to increased cases," said Dr. John Swartzberg, clinical professor emeritus at the University of California-Berkeley. "They have no way of monitoring the answer to that question until it explodes."

USA Today

Donald Trump orders meat processing plants to stay open amid coronavirus

Faced with worries of a meat shortage caused by the coronavirus, President Donald Trump on Tuesday ordered beef, pork and poultry processing plants to remain open despite safety concerns.

Citing his authority under the Defense Production Act, Trump declared in an executive order that "it is important that processors of beef, pork, and poultry ('meat and poultry') in the food supply chain continue operating and fulfilling orders to ensure a continued supply of protein for Americans."

Critics said the forced openings some plants have closed because so many employees contracted the coronavirus threaten the safety of workers who remain vulnerable to the disease.

In a full-page newspaper ad over the weekend, Tyson Foods board Chairman John Tyson said "the food supply chain is breaking," and "there will be limited supply of our products available in grocery stores until we are able to reopen our facilities that are currently closed."

USA Today

Coronavirus model increases projected death toll

A leading model projecting the total death toll from the new coronavirus increased the number of Americans predicted to die during the first wave of the virus.

The new projection says 74,073 people in the United States will die from COVID-19, within an estimated range of 56,563 to 130,666 deaths. The previous model, created by researchers at the University of Washington, had the number at 67,641 deaths.

"At least part of this increase is due to many states experiencing flatter and thus longer epidemic peaks," the researchers wrote. States have also seen deaths not fall as quickly following a peak.

Dr. Chris Murray, the director of the University of Washington's Institute for Help Metrics and Evaluation, told CNN that signs people are becoming active again also contributes to the increase. "It's a safer strategy to get the number of infections in the community down to a really low level, and then testing and contact tracing and isolation can work," Murray told the network.

Directories of open local businesses, including those doing delivery, take-out

The Eugene and Springfield chambers of commerce are compiling listings of local businesses that are open and the modified ways they are offering their goods and services to make it easier for people to support them while staying home.

Read the full story, including links to the lists, here.

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Coronavirus updates, Wednesday: Heart disease main underlying condition in COVID-19 deaths - The Register-Guard