Oregon’s universities are bucking Oregon Health Authority guidance after initially agreeing (via Paul Bausch), and moving head with major SARS-CoV-2 social distancing plans. OHA did “review” the universities’ new plans and didn’t object.
The state’s guidance had drawn a backlash from some university professors, including three University of Oregon professors living in Italy, which has been locked down in an attempt to staunch the rapidly spreading virus. And it left Oregon as the only state on the West Coast with a public university system holding in-person classes amid a nearly unprecedented outbreak.
The Oregon Health Authority had recommended against closing campuses where cases of COVID-19 are not present. But Oregon has conducted limited testing for the virus, creating a misleading picture of the virus’s community spread. Not everyone who has wanted to be tested has been.
Emphasis added.