Deschutes commissioner, nurse react to Gov. Brown’s reopening plan

Tony DeBone says additional steps needed before entering Phase One

(Update: Adding nurse's background)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Gov. Kate Brown on Monday released a draft framework for reopening Oregon's economy possibly by May 1. The plan consisted of three phases, similar to the federal guidelines.

Phase one of the plan proposes continued closures of large venues and gyms, but possibly allowing child care facilities and restaurants to reopen.

In order to reach phase one, the draft plan said certain criteria have to be met. That includes seeing a decrease in the number of symptoms and cases reported, as well as having sufficient PPE, or personal protective equipment, in healthcare facilities.

Cassondra Carper, a registered nurse currently staying with family in Bend, said meeting those criteria before May 1 seems unrealistic. She originally came to visit family more than a month ago, before the stay-at-home orders were put in place, and had to extend her vacation.

Since then, she and her mother have tried to lift the spirits of the Bend community by putting up encouraging signs and placing teddy bears on windows.

She works in the intensive care unit at a hospital and is returning to work on Sunday.

“I think if people actually had a true idea of what a COVID patient looks like or what it’s like to be in the intensive care unit on life support -- it's the saddest thing you can think of," Carper said. "To think these people are going through that without their loved ones, in the last phase of their life --they just don’t deserve that.”

Carper said health care workers still need more PPE, ventilators and drugs to distribute to patients who need to be ventilated.

“There are so many factors that come into play in trying to take care of this population, and we don’t have enough resources," Carper said.

The proposed plan comes a week after Deschutes and Jefferson County commissioners joined others around Eastern Oregon signed a joint letter asking Gov. Brown to allow businesses to reopen, with a May 1 target date to start.

Deschutes County Commissioner Tony DeBone said there is still work to be done before Oregon reaches phase one, but he supports the governor's plan.

"Phase one is best practices, so the scenario of any specific business we’re talking about, ask 'Are we going to be requiring masks?'" DeBone said. "'Are there disposable items that used to just be reusable?' And then once they’re in place and you can follow those best practices, then we can move forward.”

DeBone said the plan is still flexible to revisions, as the phases are simply guidelines.

“If we do start to do more economic activity, more gatherings and more interactions, and we have a rise in community-spread viruses, we need confidence and trust so that we can pull it back in a coordinated fashion," DeBone said. "So, that is the tightrope -- making sure we’re moving forward and if things get bad, that we can back up.”

He said one thing is for certain, and that is a changed economy

“The world’s going to be a little bit different after this, that’s for sure.”

Click here to read more about Gov. Brown's proposed plan to reopen Oregon.