SALEM, Ore. — Oregon Gov. Kate Brown said Saturday she and her husband Dan have tested positive for COVID-19 after returning from Vietnam.
“We are recuperating at home and, while this changes our Thanksgiving plans, we are grateful for effective vaccines and boosters that are helping ensure our symptoms don’t become serious,” she said Saturday afternoon on Twitter
Brown was overseas for the Vietnam-United States Trade Forum.
Oregon officials have warned that the combined effects of COVID-19, the flu and RSV – or Respiratory Syncytial Virus – could strain hospitals in the coming months. On Monday, Brown declared a state of emergency in an effort to aid hospitals as viral infections and hospitalizations rise among infants and children.
The executive order allows hospitals to bring in volunteer nurses and doctors to help with care.
RSV is spread by coughing, sneezing and looks like the common cold. Difficult breathing can get very serious in babies, kids and older adults. Legacy Randall Children’s Hospital is 100% full right now and nurses are pulling extra shifts just to keep up.
“We’re used to seeing RSV particularly in Oregon, usually in January and February and so we have historically seen numbers like this in the past before the pandemic, but this year we’re seeing it earlier than normal,” said Dr. Wendy Hassan, who’s the medical director at Randall’s pediatric intensive care unit.
Some area hospitals are being forced to tell patients they can’t do certain surgeries.
