Oregon’s economy did the best of any state or the District of Columbia during the COVID-19 pandemic by one key measure, according to a study released this week.

The W. E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research in Kalamazoo, Michigan measured employment-to-population ratio before the pandemic and current conditions.

The ratio measures all jobs and then compares it to the number of working-age residents who are employed.

The ratios in all states plummeted at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But nine states and the District of Columbia have shown increases — albeit small — in employment in the 2.5 years since the pandemic job losses.

Oregon’s ratio was up 2.3% compared to pre-pandemic levels, Alaska was at 1.7% and Louisiana was 1.1% The remaining six – the District of Columbia, West Virginia, Nebraska, Mississippi, Colorado, South Dakota and Wisconsin had growth under 1%.

The study noted that Oregon had the 7th lowest per capita death rate from the virus since it first reached the United States in January 2020.

Though the initial outbreak in the U.S. was in neighboring Washington state and the virus would spread to all parts of the nation, Oregon saw fewer fatalities per capita than all but six states.

Oregon’s death rate of 192 per 100,000 residents was almost twice as high as the lower states, Vermont (105) and Hawaii (110).

Rounding out the rest of the lowest rates were Utah, Alaska, Washington, Maine, New Hampshire, Washington D.C., and Colorado.

The W. E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research was created in 1932 by Dr. W. E. Upjohn, founder of the pharmaceutical manufacturer, Upjohn Co. It is run by a foundation separate from the company.

Michael W. Horrigan, a former associate commissioner with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, is president of what the institute’s website calls “an economic think tank.”