State officials: COVID-19 spread is ‘high’ in Iowa

The weekly number of people admitted to Iowa hospitals who have COVID-19 reached its highest in nearly a year recently, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

There were about 315 new admissions reported for the week that ended Dec. 2 — a 52 percent increase over the week before. That is the most recent week for which the data is available. A new report is expected Friday.

The number of new admissions had been increasing throughout November but had a relatively dramatic spike following Thanksgiving. A similar spike happened a year ago, and admissions stayed about that level for the rest of December 2022.

Overall COVID-19 activity in Iowa was “high” the week that ended Dec. 2, according to the latest respiratory virus surveillance report published by the state Department of Health and Human Services. There are signs that influenza is also on the rise but the department rated its activity as “low.”

“During respiratory virus season, it’s not unusual to see variations in the activity levels of different viruses due to variety of factors,” said Alex Carfrae, a department spokesperson. “Iowans should practice good hand hygiene, stay home when they’re sick, cover coughs and sneezes and talk with their health care provider about the immunizations recommended for them or their family.”

COVID-19 vaccines are often free for people who have health insurance or through the CDC’s Bridge Access Program, which has agreements with health care providers and pharmacies. The CDC has an online search to find vaccine providers, or people can call (800) 232-0233 for help.

Last April, the state ended its requirement for clinical labs to report COVID-19 test results. The number of tests reported to the state is now less than half what it was a year ago.

In the latest state respiratory virus report, about 19 percent of the reported weekly tests were positive for infection. That is the highest percentage in at least a year and can indicate two things: there is high community transmission and a need for more testing to understand the full scope of the spread.

Early in the coronavirus pandemic, the World Health Organization recommended that countries and states should wait until their positivity rates held below 5 percent before loosening restrictions meant to contain the virus.

State alters death reports

The state’s weekly respiratory virus reports also have information about deaths that are attributed to COVID-19 and influenza. But in October, Heath and Human Services modified how it reports those deaths.

Previously, the department included a cumulative tally of the deaths for each year, which reset at the start of the flu season in early October. There were about 885 deaths in Iowa related to COVID-19 for the 2022-2023 year, according to the state report for the week ending Sept. 30.

Subsequent reports do not have the cumulative total and instead have an unlabeled line chart that shows the overall trend of deaths for the past year. They also include a death count for the week that is being reported, but death reports can often be delayed for weeks or months.

Because of that, the state’s weekly COVID-19 death reports in the past two months have deviated substantially from what the CDC reports for Iowa. Since early October, the state has reported a total of 35 deaths in its weekly reports, whereas the CDC has tallied more than 120 for that time period.

Health and Human Services did not respond to requests to provide its COVID-19 death tally for this flu season.

This article first appeared in the Iowa Capital Dispatch.