BAKER CITY — Almost half of Baker County’s COVID-19 cases during the past month, when the case rate more than tripled, are people younger than 50, the age range with much lower vaccination rates compared with older residents.

Meanwhile the rate of infections among people 70 and older, the age group with the highest vaccination rate, has been declining, according to statistics from the Baker County Health Department.

Nancy Staten, the department’s director, said the latter trend shows that vaccines are effective at protecting older residents, who are most likely to die or have severe health effects.

Staten said the trends also show that the virus continues to spread among people who aren’t vaccinated. She hopes to see a significant change in that number today.

The Health Department is having its first drive-thru vaccination clinic at the Fairgrounds, with the potential to inoculate 1,160 people, and potentially more depending on how many people show up, Staten said.

Although the rise in cases started around March 23, the spread of the virus, based on age range, has changed substantially in the latter part of the period.

Between March 23 and April 2, about 17.5% of new cases in the county were among people 70 and older, Staten said. But since April 2 the rate of infections among people 70 and older has dropped to 9.9%.

The difference between the two periods is much greater when the comparison involves cases among county residents 50 and older.

From March 23 through April 2, that age range accounted for almost 53% of the county’s cases.

But since then infections among that age group have dropped to 34% of total cases.

Over the past three weeks the proportion of cases among county residents younger than 50 has increased from 47% to 66%.

Among the age range the biggest change has been among people in their 30s. That group accounted for just 10.5% of cases from March 23 to April 2. Since then, more than one in four cases in the county — 26.4% — has been a person between 30 and 39. That’s the highest percentage of cases, by almost 10%, of any age range.

Cases among residents younger than 20 have also increased, from 8.8% from March 23 to April 2, to 24% since.

Younger people are much less likely to become seriously ill after being infected. Statewide, 90% of deaths attributed to COVID-19 were people 60 or older, according to the Oregon Health Authority. Of the 2,467 deaths, just seven were younger than 30.

But Staten said some Baker County residents younger than 30 have had severe symptoms.

“It’s unpredictable,” she said. “Even younger kids can still get very sick.”

Staten also pointed out that when it comes to the county’s risk level, and the associated restrictions on businesses and events, all cases “count the same” regardless of the person’s age.

“The choices people make, about mask-wearing and vaccinations, are going to affect our schools and our businesses,” she said.

Starting Friday, April 23, Baker County’s risk level moved from the lowest of the state’s four categories to the second-highest. That forced restaurants, bars, fitness centers and theaters to reduce their indoor customer limit from 50% of capacity to 25%, with a maximum of 50 people, including staff.

Effects of vaccinations

Staten said the declining rate of infections among older residents is to be expected, considering that group has been eligible for vaccinations longer and has the highest rate of inoculations.

As of Thursday, April 22, a total of 5,410 Baker County residents — 32.2% of the county’s population — had been either fully vaccinated (4,251 people) or partially vaccinated (1,159). Almost 64% of county residents who are fully or partially vaccinated are 60 or older.

Staten said the county has had a few “breakthrough” cases — people who tested positive after being fully vaccinated.