The increase in recently reported cases in Oregon this week was relatively small, with the one-day daily average rising from 200 cases on Monday to 252 on Friday. But the blow comes after nine consecutive weeks of rapid decline and could predict more infections in the coming weeks. The upward and downward course of infections has often shifted throughout the pandemic. Oregon recorded record numbers of cases during the increase in cases in January, averaging more than 8,000 cases a day before falling to its lowest levels since last summer. This puts the new increase in perspective, and many federal health officials have said they do not expect a large increase nationally due to the even more contagious BA.2 subcommittee of omicron. According to the modeling of the University of Oregon Health & Science, this sub-variable, combined with the lifting of restrictions on the pandemic, could trigger an increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations that will peak on May 9th. About half of the estimated 293 hospitalizations would be people who happen to test positive for COVID-19 and are in hospital receiving treatment for something else, OHSU analyst Peter Graven said in an email. University modeling has underestimated and overestimated previous increases. Sub-variant BA.2 has already led to an increase in cases in Europe, an area that in the past served as an early indicator of what could be expected of the United States. Seventeen states have reported an increase in cases in recent weeks, according to the New York Times. At present, coronavirus hospitalization in Oregon remains close to 110 occupied beds. The number of patients in intensive care beds has also dropped to unprecedented levels in months, with 15 occupied ICU beds reported on Wednesday – the lowest number since the first pandemic wave in the spring of 2020. In light of declining hospitalizations and cases, the Oregon Health Authority said Monday that it would no longer publish detailed daily news bulletins about the pandemic situation. While much of the information will be available and updated every business day on the agency’s online databases, the state will no longer provide detailed information about those who died, including their age, county, date tested positive and date and the location of death. – Fyodor Zarkin