When Oregon Republicans fled the Capitol a week ago, much of the news coverage and social media discussion in the state focused on the walkout and the climate cap-and-trade bill the GOP sought to kill or have referred to voters.

That began to shift late last week, with news that the first Oregon case of presumptive coronavirus was diagnosed on Friday in the state’s populous Portland metropolitan area. By Monday there were three Oregon adults with the diagnosis, including one who attended a youth basketball game in Umatilla County.

Oregon has yet to follow Washington, where the coronavirus has so far caused more fatalities, in declaring a state of emergency. The Oregon Health Authority had the resources it needed to work with local health agencies and medical providers as of Sunday, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported. But Brown also was ready to declare an emergency if and when necessary, her spokesman said.

Washington also has something Oregon doesn’t right now: a full Legislature, meeting and voting on bills. This includes a $100 million emergency funding request from that state’s health secretary, the Northwest News Network reported.

The increased interest in Oregon leaders’ response to the spreading virus could pose a quandary for Republicans, most of whom remain out of state in order to block Democrats from passing cap-and-trade or any other bills.

On Monday afternoon, Rep. Greg Barreto, R-Cove, said he was on the phone with the House Republican caucus when a reporter called. Barreto represents the town of Weston, where the basketball game took place in a local school gym.

“Quite frankly, I don’t know if I can do anything if I was back that I couldn’t do over the phone,” Barreto said. “Really, (Oregon Health Authority) has got the lead on that and I would think the commissioners here in Umatilla County are right there beside them.”

Sen. Bill Hansell, R-Athena, also represents Weston. He could not be reached for comment Monday afternoon regarding whether the spread of coronavirus is impacting his decision to stay away from the Capitol and likely outside Oregon.

Meanwhile, one of the two Republicans who has remained at the Capitol, Rep. Cheri Helt of Bend, scheduled a roundtable at a library in her district tonight to discuss preparations for coronavirus.

“It is important that we efficiently and effectively communicate with our community to tell our neighbors about the work that is being done to prevent a public health crisis,” Helt said in a statement. She invited local government leaders and health professionals to join her for the discussion.

Democrats, who have continued to hold committee meetings this week on climate change, budget bills and other legislation, are also turning their attention to Oregon’s response to the virus. Senate Human Services Chair Sara Gelser, D-Corvallis, scheduled a Wednesday afternoon briefing on how the state is handling care for high-risk populations including older Oregonians, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, people living in institutional settings and people experiencing homelessness.

The governor also used the campaign apparatus she built for her 2018 reelection to contact her supporters directly with an emailed update.

“We are working day and night to contain this disease,” Gov. Kate Brown wrote in the email. “And as we tackle this challenge, we will be open with the public and share information as quickly as possible. In fact, we announced the first confirmed case within just a few hours of learning the test results.”

Christopher McKnight Nichols, a history professor and director of the Oregon State University Center for the Humanities, has written about how governments responded to the 1918 flu pandemic and is closely following the legislative Republican walkouts. He said most Republicans’ absence from the state during this critical time could bear consequences in this year’s general election.

“In November, one of the cudgels that Democrats have to brandish against Republicans is they walked out at a critical time for Oregonians,” McKnight Nichols said. “You can imagine this will have a pretty long tail.”

— Hillary Borrud | hborrud@oregonian.com | 503-294-4034 | @hborrud

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