More than 7,600 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Iowa in past week

COVID-19 infections continue to rise in Iowa, with 7,643 new cases reported statewide in the past week when the seven-day positivity rate was 8.5 percent.

That’s almost a thousand more new cases than were reported last week — 6,983 — when the seven-day positivity rate was 8.1 percent. The week before, state public health officials reported 6,907 new infections.

The 17 and under age group, as it has for the past several weeks, continues to represent the highest share of new cases in Iowa — 20 percent. That compares to 22 percent the week before.

Linn County reported 505 new cases in the past week and a seven-day positivity rate of 7.9 percent. Those numbers are down from the week before, when 535 new cases were reported with a seven-day positivity rate of 8.8 percent.

Johnson County reported 269 cases with a 6.7 positivity rate. Those numbers are up from the previous week, when 180 new cases were reported with a positivity rate of 4.6 percent.

Black Hawk County, which includes Waterloo, reported 504 new cases in the past week, with a seven-day average of 72. The county has not reported a seven-day average that high since the 75 reported Dec. 8.

A map from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows 97 Iowa counties continue to have the highest rate of community transmission. Grundy and Hardin counties in north-central Iowa are showing a “substantial” rate of transmission and Louisa County in southeast Iowa is categorized as “moderate.”

Deaths

Iowa in the past week surpassed 7,000 deaths as a result of the novel coronavirus, which first appeared in Iowa in March 2020.

Public health officials confirmed 104 new deaths this week, bringing the statewide total to 7,069. That’s down from the previous week’s total of 117.

Polk County reported 15 confirmed deaths, the most of any county, for a total of 754 in the past.

Linn County reported six deaths this week. Scott County and Jasper County confirmed six and five deaths, respectively.

Cerro Gordo, Dubuque and Webster counties all reported four deaths.

Three deaths were each reported in Des Moines, Lee, Marion, Marshall, Pottawattamie, Warren, Woodbury and Wright counties.

Two deaths were confirmed in Bremer, Calhoun, Henry, Iowa, Keokuk, Muscatine, O'Brien, Page and Washington counties.

Counties confirming one death each were Adair, Adams, Appanoose, Black Hawk, Boone, Delaware, Hamilton, Hardin, Humboldt, Jefferson, Mahaska, Monroe, Poweshiek, Ringgold, Sac, Tama, Winnebago and Worth.

Hospitalizations

The number of Iowans hospitalized with COVID-19 totaled 483 in the past week, compared to 531 the previous week.

Patients in intensive care units also dropped to 111 from 129, and patients on ventilators dipped to 53 from 64.

The aged 17-and-younger age group represented 8 percent of new hospital admissions this week — a leap from the 1 percent last week.

The 18 to 29 age group represented 7 percent of new hospital COVID-19 admissions, the same as last week.

Those not fully vaccinated account for 82 percent of COVID-19 patients in intensive care units and 74.8 percent of those hospitalized.

Vaccinations

An additional 9,380 Iowans were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 in the past week, bringing the statewide total to 1,665,359.

That accounts for 62.23 percent of Iowans age 12 and over and 52.78 percent of the state’s entire population.

An additional 697 Linn County residents became fully vaccinated in the past week, for a total of 133,758. That’s 74.13 percent of residents aged 16 and older and 59 percent of the total county population.

Johnson County reported another 347 residents were fully vaccinated in the past week, for a total of 95,246. That’s 76.62 percent of residents aged 16 and older and 63.02 percent of the county’s total population.

Long-term care

In the past week, 23 long-term care facilities in Iowa were reporting a coronavirus outbreak, defined as three or more COVID-19 cases among staff and residents.

That’s down from 30 facilities last week.

Comments: (319) 398-8469; michaela.ramm@thegazette.com

John McGlothlen of The Gazette contributed to this report.