COVID-stricken Oregon deploys National Guard to hospitals

By GILLIAN FLACCUS
Associated Press

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon’s governor says she will deploy up to 1,500 National Guard troops to hospitals around the state to support healthcare workers as COVID-19 surges amid the rapid spread of the Delta variant. Gov. Kate Brown, a Democrat, says starting Aug. 20 she will send an initial 500 Guard members to serve as equipment runners in hospitals and help with COVID-19 testing, among other things. There are 733 people hospitalized with the virus in Oregon, including 185 in intensive care units. Hospitals have warned they are near capacity as the state endures a fourth wave of the outbreak.