MULTNOMAH COUNTY, Ore. —
A COVID-19 outbreak infecting 48 workers at Townsend Farms locations in Washington and Multnomah counties has drawn attention to health concerns surrounding farmworkers.
According to Oregon Health Authority Senior Health Advisor Dr. Dawn Mautner, farmworker communities have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Agricultural work environments are not designed for social distancing,” Mautner said.
Mautner went on to say that testing and care capacity at community health centers, where most farmworkers receive medical attention, have increased in the past two months. She said the centers can now accept more than just acute cases of COVID-19. They can also address issues that could complicate a patient’s response to coronavirus.
KGW spoke with Dr. Laura Byerly, Medical Director at Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Center, which serves migrant farmworkers in Washington and Yamhill counties. Byerly said the 48 cases from Townsend Farms came in a group of 350 seasonal workers that arrived over the weekend.
The workers were tested on Monday and Tuesday and were already positive. Byerly said the workers likely got sick before coming to Oregon since it takes two to six days before patients test positive for COVID-19.
Byerly said this outbreak was an example of how quickly the virus can spread.
“This is not Townsend farms, this is not people traveling from Mexico, this is how the virus transmits,” said Byerly. “Any group of people who are traveling together and living in tight quarters.”
Townsend is working with state and county agencies to ensure it’s meeting sanitation guidelines, providing physical distancing for its workers and wearing personal protective equipment.
This week, members of the Oregon Army National Guard, Department of Agriculture and Oregon State University extension program began delivering 900,000 face coverings for agricultural workers across the state.
And as workers tend to the harvest, Dr. Byerly says she and her team will tend to their health.
“We'll keep visiting, we're going to go out to the same camp weekly, so we'll have the chance to offer more tests, repeat tests.”