PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – On Thursday, Oregon officials announced the end of statewide COVID-19 health measures and the federal pandemic emergency order was lifted. However, the virus remains in communities and doctors believe vaccines will still be necessary. 

The lifted COVID-19 measures in Oregon mean the state will no longer require workers in a health care setting to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The vaccine requirement for teachers and school staff will lift June 17. 

It also means the five-day isolation period for those infected with COVID-19 will no longer be recommended for the general population. 

Health officials now believe that because of widespread immunity to the virus due to vaccination and repeated infections, many COVID-19 infections are now likely asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic, and the five-day isolation period does little to reduce transmission.

Dr. Katie Sharff, chief of infectious disease for Kaiser Permanente Northwest said widespread immunity is also a reason to lift the vaccine requirements. 

According to the National Institutes of Health, by November 9, 2022, 94% of the U.S. population was estimated to have been infected by the SARS-CoV-2 virus at least once. Combined with vaccination, scientists predict 97% of Americans have had some immunological exposure to the virus. 

“At this point, knowing that our population has that high level of immunity, and knowing that the vaccines, although very effective at preventing severe hospitalization and death, don’t prevent disease or transmission, I think it’s completely appropriate to remove the mandates,” Sharff said. 

While the mandates might be lifted, that doesn’t mean people should not take it upon themselves to stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines. 

Currently, there is a second bivalent COVID-19 booster vaccine available to people 65 and older and people who are moderately or severely immunocompromised who have already received their first booster shot. 

However, the timing of when a shot like this might be available to the rest of the population is still unknown. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in April that it is taking steps toward single, possibly annual, doses of the vaccine for most individuals moving forward. Researchers have seen increases in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations during the winter months and when new variants emerge that can get past people’s immunity. 

The CDC is considering recommending a fall booster dose that people could get approximately 1 year from their last dose. 

“The expectation that we have is that they will choose the strains that would be in that vaccine as early as this June with the potential for an annual vaccine to be available in the fall, and that would come out at the same time as the influenza vaccine,” Sharff said. 

The idea is that it would be easier for people to receive both the COVID-19 booster and the flu vaccine at the same time or around the same time. 

Although the booster vaccine might be rolled out in the fall, Sharff said the virus is still too new to know if it has a seasonal pattern like influenza. Doctors do know, however, that people are more likely to spread respiratory viruses during the winter months because people spend more time in crowded indoor spaces. 

Sharff sees the end of the state and federal COVID-19 measures as a sign of how far we’ve come since the pandemic and said there is a sense of achievement for what the healthcare community and scientists have accomplished. 

She isn’t sure if another variant of COVID-19 is looming in the future, one that could bypass people’s immunity, but said if there is, people are more prepared now than they were three years ago. Most have some sort of immunity and doctors hope that the next time a person is exposed to any form of the virus, the infection will be less severe. 

“I think trying to live in anticipation or fear is probably not the most effective way to move forward. And so, I guess anything’s possible. But at this time, I’m reassured by all the tools that we have and the immunity that we have among the population,” she said.  

In addition to lifting vaccination requirements and the recommended five-day isolation period, Oregon said diagnostic COVID-19 testing resources for students and staff in schools will wrap up after July 31, 2024. 

Oregon epidemiologists will transition to a more effective model of COVID-19 reporting that focuses on transmission and monitoring server outcomes, like hospitalization and death. May 11 also marks the end of extended health coverage, services and support for people with disabilities and older adults.