Iowa COVID-19 hospitalizations at lowest level since May

The number of new COVID-19 cases in Iowa dropped for the seventh consecutive week, to 1,508, down from last week’s 1,718 new infections, according to numbers released Wednesday.

To date, 861,010 people have tested positive in Iowa since the pandemic arrived in the state in March 2020, according to the Iowa Department of Public Health. The actual total is likely higher, given the availability of at-home test kits, which are not reported to the state.

Linn County reported 135 new infections in the past week, down from 162 the previous week. The county has recorded 61,047 people testing positive since March 2020.

Johnson County added 124 new cases, down from 148 reported the previous week. A total of 42,553 people in Johnson County have tested positive since March 2020.

Deaths

The state confirmed 27 deaths from the virus in the past week, including one in Linn County. That’s a slight decrease from the 28 deaths reported the previous week.

Statewide, 10,152 people have died of COVID-19 since the pandemic began. Linn County has reported 627 COVID-19 deaths, and Johnson County has reported 167 since March 2020.

Hospitalizations

COVID-19 hospitalizations are at the lowest level in Iowa since May.

The number of patients in the state hospitalized with COVID-19 decreased to 144, down from the previous week’s 174.

The number of patients in intensive care units decreased from 26 to 12 in the past week.

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