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Governor Kate Brown visited the Salem Health COVID-19 vaccination clinic at the Oregon State Fairgrounds on Wednesday.
Brown watched National Guard member Juan Carlos Rojas, from Salem, administer the Pfizer vaccine to Jason Mayberry, who lives in Portland and works in Salem.
In a brief statement, Brown said she hoped similar clinics could be replicated in other major cities in Oregon.
“Salem Health responded in a very short time. They vaccinate hundreds to 3,000 people a day. It really is an extraordinary effort, ”said Brown.
Brown has activated 40 guards to help out at the clinic starting Tuesday.
Salem Health president Cheryl Wolfe said the hospital had administered 11,000 vaccines since the clinic opened a week ago.
“Our plan is to be open until Oregon is vaccinated,” Wolfe said.
On Tuesday, Brown announced that the state would soon open vaccines to all people aged 65 and over, in accordance with new federal guidelines.
Until now, vaccines have been limited to health workers and residents of long-term care facilities, followed by teachers and school staff.
Federal guidelines also call for administering the vaccine to people between the ages of 18 and 65 with health conditions that could make them more susceptible to COVID-19. But Oregon will not yet include that population, Brown said Wednesday.
Right now, the state receives about 50,000 shots per week, while there are about 800,000 Oregonians aged 65 or older or school staff, she said.
“We’re going to work hard and get these people vaccinated as quickly and efficiently as possible, and then we’ll include Oregonians between the ages of 65 and 18 in the pool,” Brown said.
Charles Boyle, Brown’s spokesperson, later said there were about 1.6 million Oregonians who could potentially be considered to have an underlying health problem.
“At this point there is not enough vaccine available for this large number of people, but we will work with stakeholders to develop outreach and distribution plans so that we are ready to start vaccinating Oregonians with it. underlying health conditions as more vaccines become available, ”Boyle said.
Brown ended his visit by chatting with nurses and members of the National Guard who administered vaccines to patients at the clinic.
–Tracy Loew / The Salem Statesman Journal
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