July 3, 2020 12:50 p.m.

Oregon had the second highest daily case count of COVID-19 since the pandemic began, on Friday.

An update from the Oregon Health Authority reported 344 new confirmed and presumptive cases bringing the state total to 9,636. The new confirmed and presumptive cases include:

*59 in Multnomah County

*49 in Umatilla County

*46 in Washington County

*32 in Marion County

*22 in Clackamas County

*20 in Malheur County

*18 in Lincoln County

*16 in Lane County

*10 each in Morrow and Wasco counties

*9 each in Jackson and Deschutes counties

*8 in Union County

*7 in Benton County

*5 each in Jefferson and Polk counties

*3 each in Columbia and Josephine counties

*2 each in Linn, and Klamath counties

*1 each in Coos, Clatsop, Crook, Douglas, Lake, Sherman, Tillamook and Yamhill counties

The Oregon Health Authority has released information regarding where COVID-19 is spreading at the fastest rate and which counties have the highest rate of sporadic transmission. That is cases that do not have a clear epidemiological link to other outbreaks or clusters and therefore indicate that the virus is spreading uncontained in a community.

Governor Kate Brown has placed 8 counties on a “watch list” based on this data. Those are: Jefferson, Lake, Lincoln, Malheur, Morrow, Umatilla, Union, and Wasco counties. State and local health officials will closely monitor the situation in those counties in coming days and prioritize additional resources to suppress the virus in these hotspot communities.