Iowa covid numbers remain high overall, with a positivity rate over 20 percent, leaving some to wonder if Gov. Kim Reynolds should be so quick to end all covid precautions. Over the last seven days, there were 19,161 positive tests reported. That’s down from 23,461 at last report on Monday, but still a high number. In addition, while the state’s 14-day positivity rate fell from 22.9 percent, it only slipped a bit to 21.5 percent. Other covid numbers continue to fall, but not a huge amount. For example, there are currently 794 patients hospitalized with the virus, down from 849 on Monday. Just... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds says the state is over the hump in terms of covid, and she’s taking down the covid websites and letting the Public Health Disaster Emergency Proclamation for the state expire. Reynolds announced Thursday that she has signed the final extension of Iowa’s Public Health Disaster Emergency Proclamation, letting it expire at 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 15. Reynolds first issued the public health emergency proclamation on March 17, 2020, as covid first began to bloom and spread throughout the U.S.  Iowa’s covid numbers continue to remain problematic,... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: Iowa’s covid numbers for infection, deaths and hospitalizations remained in the danger zone again this week, with the omicron variant spreading to 10 Iowa counties, as shutdowns increase nationwide, including in neighboring Illinois. Omicron has now been identified in over three dozen patients in ten Iowa counties, including Black Hawk, Des Moines, Dubuque, Franklin, Jefferson, Johnson, Linn, Polk, Scott and Story counties. The more virulent variant is spiking along with new cases of previous variants, as Iowa Department of Public Health has reported 9,506 positive tests per... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: The omicron covid variant has begun ripping through Iowa, with the number of confirmed cases leaping across seven counties, as for the third week in a row covid numbers have soared across the state, prompting some to wonder if new restrictions including mask mandates and remote learning for schools may be on the way. Omicron has now infected people in Black Hawk, Jefferson, Johnson, Linn, Polk, Scott and Story counties, according to the latest numbers from the Iowa Department of Public Health. The total number of confirmed infections has gone from one to almost two dozen in a little... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: For the third week in a row, covid-19 hospitalizations in Iowa have hit their highest numbers for the year, as the state’s positivity rate roars upward and deaths continue to rise. According to the latest numbers from the Iowa Department of Public Health, there are 823 patients in hospitals with covid, including 173 in intensive care and 103 on ventilators. There were 10,476 new reported COVID-19 cases over the past week, an average of 1,497 per day, and the state’s 14-day positivity rate is 11.3 percent. As in neighboring Illinois, the numbers are largely driven by the... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: Iowa covid cases have hit “in a dangerous zone” according to state health officials, as the first case of the omicron variant has been identified in the state, and infections, deaths and hospitalizations skyrocket. The Iowa Department of Public Health tweeted out today that the first case of the omicron variant has been detected in a child under 18 who lives in Black Hawk County, which includes Cedar Rapids and surrounding areas. The person was unvaccinated and was exposed to the new variant through travel. Black Hawk County health officials will continue to monitor the... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: Iowa’s covid-19 numbers for infections, hospitalizations and deaths are at their highest in over a year, as the omicron variant has broken out in surrounding states, prompting many officials in Iowa to call for a statewide mask mandate and other restrictions. The latest data from the Iowa Department of Public Health shows COVID-19 case numbers and the death toll are accelerating, with 7,550 people dead from covid in Iowa since early 220, 777 people currently hospitalized, 185 people in intensive care, and a statewide average positivity rate of a whopping 12 percent over the... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: Iowa covid-19 numbers continue to soar, with the Iowa Department of Public Health reporting 9,132 new COVID-19 cases in the past week, an average of 1,304 per day, prompting some to call for new mask mandates in schools and statewide. There were 102 deaths reported last week as well, bringing the state’s total to 7,268 COVID-19 deaths since the start of the pandemic. In addition, hospitalizations due to covid also continued to increase, rising to 544, including 123 patients in intensive care and 57 on ventilators. Children under 18 make up over 20 percent of the positive case... Read More

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has signed a law protecting workers from having to comply with covid mandates at the office if they have religious or other exemptions to them. On Friday night, Reynolds signed the bill that would allow employees to escape employer covid mandates, including vaccination mandates, and allow greater use of medical and religious exemptions for people to refuse covid restrictions. The Iowa House and Senate had passed the bill Thursday. It makes it tougher for businesses to Kim Reynolds require employees to be vaccinated or submit to other covid protocols such as regular testing.... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: New Iowa covid-19 numbers show a positive trend, but are still on “high alert,” with over 1,000 daily new cases for the eighth week in a row — a significant increase over summer’s 100 per day average. October numbers for Iowa are down 23 percent from September, with hospitalizations falling 10 percent over the past two weeks. The Iowa Department of Public Health reported Wednesday that 598 Iowans are currently hospitalized for COVID-19, with 150 patients in the UCU. Only 55 percent of all Iowans are vaccinated, which is driving the continued spread, as most... Read More