April 9, 2021 3:45 a.m.

The Oregon Health Authority has identified 168 COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough cases through April 2nd, including 3 deaths.

OHA said that is when vaccinated individuals test positive for the virus.

An OHA release said it’s a reminder that while the Phizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are all highly effective at preventing severe COVID-19 illness and death, no vaccine is 100 percent effective, and vaccine breakthrough cases will occur.

OHA said the cases have been reported in 25 counties and all health care preparedness regions in the state. 27 of the cases were reported in the region that includes Douglas, Lane, Coos and Curry counties. OHA is not reporting the regions in which the deaths took place.

The release said vaccine breakthrough cases are defined as instances in which an individual received a positive COVID-19 test result at least 14 days after the final dose of any COVID-19 vaccine series. Vaccine breakthrough cases can be prevented by basic public health interventions, such as masking, physical distancing and avoiding social gatherings.

OHA said the number of vaccine outbreak cases identified in Oregon represents a very small proportion of the more than 700,000 people in Oregon that have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 11 percent of the vaccine breakthrough cases were hospitalized within the 30 days following their positive test. Most occurred in people older than age 65, or with underlying health conditions. The three deaths represent fewer than 2 percent of the vaccine breakthrough cases. None were associated with a COVID-19 variant.

The release said state and local epidemiologists are continuing to track and investigate vaccine breakthrough cases and are working closely with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to collect information that may provide insight into characteristics associated with vaccine breakthrough.