DOUGLAS COUNTY, Ore. — Health officials confirmed Wednesday that an infant under the age of 1 died in Douglas County this week from complications related to COVID-19.
The infant was diagnosed with COVID-19-related symptoms on Aug. 20 and died Monday, The News-Review reported. Douglas County COVID-19 Recovery Team spokesperson Tamara Howell told the newspaper that the child also had other health complications.
The baby’s death was one of 13 reported Wednesday by county officials. Children under the age of 12 are not eligible to be vaccinated against COVID-19, as clinical trials are ongoing. Information shared by the county showed that of the other deaths noted Wednesday, only one was reported in a fully vaccinated person.
“The significant number of deaths over the past month have been so incredibly tragic and heartbreaking,” Douglas County Public Health Officer Dr. Bob Dannenhoffer said in a statement shared Wednesday by government officials in Roseburg. He added that officials “thoroughly investigate all deaths, and review all medical records to make sure that everyone meets the requirements for a COVID related death as per the Oregon Investigative Guidelines.”
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“While we have chosen to not provide detailed case information out of respect for the privacy of those that have passed and their families, as well as our ethical responsibility to follow all medical and HIPPA records laws, we can say that some of those who died were perfectly well before they contracted COVID and died,” Dannenhoffer said.
“They were all someone’s family, someone’s friends and our neighbors, who all died too soon. Please, keep you and your family healthy, and protect those you love the best way you can.”
Vaccines against COVID-19 are available to Americans aged 12 and older free of charge. Research has shown that fully vaccinated people can spread the highly transmissible delta variant, which accounts for more than 80% of all COVID-19 cases reported across the U.S.; however, officials have noted that vaccination protects well against severe and life-threatening symptoms of the viral infection.
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Nearly 63% of the U.S. population, or 208.3 million people, has received at least one vaccine dose as of Thursday morning, according to latest data available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 53% of the total U.S. population, or 177.4 million people, has so far been fully vaccinated.
In Oregon, public health officials have identified nearly 292,000 COVID-19 cases and reported 3,373 deaths since the start of the pandemic. Nationwide, officials have confirmed more than 40.5 million infections and reported more than 653,000 deaths, according to numbers compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
More than 222.8 million COVID-19 cases have been reported worldwide, resulting in over 4.6 million deaths, according to Johns Hopkins.