KWSO News for Mon. May 11, 2020

According to the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs there are 15 positive cases of COVID-19 on the Reservation, as of 4:30pm Friday afternoon. There number of positive cases held steady for a three day period last week. The Warm Springs Health and Wellness Center has sent in or tested 233 samples, with 212 returning negative and 6 results pending.

The state’s death toll from COVID-19 remained unchanged from Saturday to Sunday – remaining at 127, the Oregon Health Authority reported yesterday morning  60 new confirmed cases and eight new presumptive cases of COVID-19.

Warm Springs Tribal Council was scheduled to meet today however the meeting was cancelled and rescheduled for tomorrow.   On their agenda is a discussion on a new  BIA Superintendent selection, a Housing Lease Resolution, Attorney Contract Discussion,  Kindred Spirits Project Grant Resolution, COVID Team Update including the status on Pi-ume-sha & the 4th of July.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act—CARES Act—provides funding to workers and families, small businesses, and governments for economic relief during the COVID-19 crisis. Last week, the Yakama Nation received more than fifty eight million dollars ($58,743,956.53) from the CARES Act to assist with necessary expenses incurred as a result of the pandemic.  The CARES Act resources may only be used for unbudgeted, necessary expenses that are incurred as a result of the COVID-19 public health emergency. Further, those expenses must occur between March 1, 2020 and December 30, 2020. As part of the legislation, any portion of the $58 million in funding received by the Yakama Nation but not used prior to December 30, 2020 must be returned to the United States.

20 Oregon counties have applied to reopen during coronavirus pandemic.  They each turning in plans to meet seven prerequisites to enter Phase 1 of Reopening Oregon. The 7 prerequisites are:

1. Declining prevalence of COVID-19
2. Minimum Testing Regimen
3. Contact Tracing System
4. Isolation/Quarantine Facilities
5. Finalized Statewide Sector Guidelines
6. Sufficient Health Care Capacity
7. Sufficient PPE Supply

20 counties submitted plans for reopening including: Crook, Jefferson and Deschutes counties.

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival announced late Friday that won’t open its doors again in 20-20. J-P-R’s Liam Moriarty has more. “The regional theater’s season was first cut short in mid-March by Governor Kate Brown’s decision to ban large gatherings in order to fight the spread of the coronavirus. At that time, O-S-F laid off 80 percent of its staff and scuttled about half its program of plays. The company had planned to re-open with an abbreviated program on September 8th. But that effort to salvage the season was put to rest by the Governor’s order last week to continue prohibiting large gatherings until at least the end of September. O-S-F announced late Friday that it was throwing in the towel for the year.  Theater officials said the cancellation of the entire 20-20 season will have “very real financial consequences” for the festival. O-S-F had already been financially weakened by disruptions in recent years caused by wildfire smoke and it recently launched a 5 (m)million-dollar “critical relief” fundraising campaign. 
Liam Moriarty, J-P-R News”