COVID-19 Update: RISING CASES AND UPDATED VACCINES

By Lily HA
From PHN Issue 55, Winter 2024

As of October 2023, there has been another surge in COVID-19 cases. Since data reporting to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is more limited than it was earlier in the pandemic, it’s harder to know the size of the surge. Still, cases, hospitalizations, and deaths have all increased since summer. When possible, wearing a mask, keeping physical distance between yourself and others, and getting tested if you feel sick or are around someone else who tests positive continue to be good ways to protect yourself and others.

New variants of the coronavirus continue to arise, as experts have expected. There are currently multiple sub-variants of the Omicron variant going around. So far, these new variants and sub-variants seem to have similar symptoms to and cause similarly severe disease as previous variants, although they are more transmissible (easier to get and pass on to other people).

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What is COVID-19?

By Monet Davis and Lorin Jackson

From PHN Issue 42, Spring 2020

All information adapted from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at CDC.gov and the World Health Organization at who.int.

Defining COVID-19

The coronavirus disease 2019 is a disease caused by a virus that was discovered in the Wuhan province of China in February 2019. It is abbreviated as COVID-19 and often referred to as the “coronavirus,” “corona,” or “the ‘rona.” In COVID-19, the ‘CO’ stands for ‘corona,’ ‘VI’ for ‘virus,’ and ‘D’ for disease. The 19 is for the year 2019.

How to Get Your Medical Records

By Timothy Hinkhouse

From PHN Issue 40, Summer/Fall 2019

Being in prison away from our families and friends takes a toll on us, which can lead to unexpected illnesses. We have to navigate our way through the jail/prison health care processes in order for us to get the treatment we need and in a timely manner, so we can live to see another day.

I had wanted to get a copy of my last blood work from my medical file so I can closely monitor my HIV viral load, CD4s, my liver function, etc. When I wrote to our medical department, this is a direct quote of what was written back: “Release of information contained in an inmate’s health record shall occur only when properly requested upon receipt of a fully completed authorization form signed by the inmate. A complete signed CD-28 should also accompany the request. In compliance with the Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) 192563, the Oregon Department of Corrections will apply charges to each request for health care records. $1.25 for each page for pages 1 through 10, and then $0.25 for each additional page thereafter.”

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