Iowa COVID-19 cases rise while hospitalization decreases

The state of Iowa has seen a 22% increase in reported COVID-19 cases in the past seven days, the Iowa Department of Public Health reported Wednesday. 

A total of 4,787 Iowans have reported testing positive for COVID-19 over the past week — roughly 684 per day, the state agency reported. That is up from 3,919 new cases reported last week. This report does not account for at-home tests, which the state does not track. 

An additional eight people have died after contracting COVID-19, bringing Iowa’s total deaths to 9,688.

Of those infected, 162 cases are receiving in-patient bed care at a hospital according to the U.S. Department of Human Health Services. This makes up just over 2% of hospital beds in use for COVID-19 patients in the state. There are 22 fewer patients receiving hospital treatment for COVID-19 than last week. 

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ranks counties for COVID-19 risk based on hospital capacity and the total number of new cases in a county. Iowa counties listed as “high,” with recommendations to wear masks indoors in public include Jackson, Chickasaw, Floyd and Palo Alto County. Of these, only Jackson was listed as medium risk in last week’s report.

Iowa counties currently listed at the medium level of risk include: Benton, Cedar, Des Moines, Dubuque, Hancock, Henry, Iowa, Jones, Linn, Louisa, Mills, Poweshiek and Washington County. Winneshiek and Johnson County were downgraded from high risk to medium over the last week.