PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — As Oregon health officials prepare for a predicted surge in COVID-19 hospitalizations fueled by the omicron variant, the state has reported its highest daily case count — 1,900 — since September. Tuesday’s case count is more than double the average number of daily COVID-19 cases in December. Oregon Health and Science University Data Scientist, Peter Graven, said he expects to see cases go up dramatically in the next two weeks. New COVID-19 cases in the U.S. have soared to highest levels on record — more than 265,000 per day on average — due to the highly contagious omicron variant. The previous mark was 250,000 cases per day, set in mid-January, according to data kept by Johns Hopkins University.