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State health leaders adjust to CDC mask mandate change May 25 2021
Oregon Health Authority requiring public places to check vaccination status before allowing people to shed masks
An unanticipated, dramatic change in CDC mask guidance has not ushered in a new mask era in Oregon nor locally – at least not yet.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently announced that fully vaccinated individuals can go into most indoor and outdoor locations without a mask. A person is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after their second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or their single dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
The Oregon Health Authority loosens mask restrictions following the CDC announcement last week.
The Oregon Health Authority loosened mask restrictions Tuesday, May 18, which included allowing fully vaccinated people to be indoors in most public settings without a face covering.
In public settings where vaccination status is checked, masks will not be required, the agency said Tuesday. If there is no vaccination status being checked, however, masks will still be needed.
In addition, the health authority said businesses and venue operators can set their own mask policies.
Finally, mask requirements no longer apply to anyone who is outdoors, though the health authority said it recommends wearing a mask in crowded areas and large gatherings and to maintain physical distance as much as possible.
Oregon lawmakers contemplate new rules for health care mergers May 19 2021
A Lake Oswego lawmaker wants the country s most sweeping health care merger oversight. Hospitals say it goes too far.
Lawmakers are considering a bill that would give Oregon the most sweeping state oversight of health care mergers in the country.
But while supporters say House Bill 2362 would counter increased costs and curbs on care, opponents say it goes too far.
The system contemplated by chief sponsor Rep. Andrea Salinas, D-Lake Oswego, is drawing support from pro-abortion and death-with-dignity groups as a response to one slice of the merger trend: the rapid growth of health care entities affiliated with the Catholic Church, which restrict care for women and transgender people.