Fact Checker: Are hospitalizations in Iowa primarily because of COVID-19 decreasing?

Iowa is emerging from a record-breaking COVID-19 surge that nearly pushed the state’s hospitals to the breaking point.

But according to Gov. Kim Reynolds, the novel coronavirus was not the sole reason for those high patient counts. The Republican governor told reporters at the Iowa State Capitol Feb. 9 that data is showing patients infected during this latest surge were more likely to be admitted to hospitals for reasons aside from COVID-19.

“At the height of our hospitalizations in November 2020, for 75 percent of hospitalizations, the primary reason was COVID-19,” Reynolds said. “Today, the number of hospitalizations primarily because of COVID-19 are under 50 percent.”

Analysis

In the first part of her statement, Reynolds was referring to Nov. 17, 2020, when COVID-19 hospitalizations across Iowa were at its highest peak, according to Governor’s Office spokesman Alex Murphy. The Gazette’s analysis of publicly available coronavirus data confirms that date was the highest patient count seen in the past two years.

There were 1,527 patients with COVID-19 in Iowa hospitals on Nov. 17, 2020. Of those, COVID-19 was the primary reason 1,117 patients — or 73.14 percent — were hospitalized, according to the Iowa Department of Public Health.

Total hospitalizations were 606 on Feb. 9, 2022, the day Reynolds spoke with reporters. State public health data shows 296 were primarily hospitalized for COVID-19, which is slightly above 48 percent of 606.

Health officials across the country have been reporting a similar trend in “incidental” COVID-19 hospitalizations, which refers to patients who were admitted for other health reasons but then tested positive for the virus as part of a routine screening.

The most recent surge of COVID-19 cases, which was driven by the highly transmissible omicron variant, resulted in many states experiencing the highest COVID-19-related hospitalization levels since the pandemic started two years ago.

But unlike previous surges, larger portions of patients nationwide were not coming to the hospital because of COVID-19.

The nation’s top public health experts — including Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky and Dr. Anthony Fauci, the President’s chief medical adviser — made similar statements in Dec. 5 that “many” children nationwide are hospitalized with COVID-19, as opposed to because of COVID-19.

New York public health officials reported on Jan. 17 about 42 percent of all COVID-19 positive patients in hospitals across the state did not have the virus listed as the reason for admission. The New York Times reported that rate of incidental COVID-19 cases ranged between 50 percent to 65 percent in other New York hospitals.

In addition to New York, other states have begun to ask hospitals to specify whether COVID-19 patients were admitted for reasons other than the coronavirus. That includes Florida, where one health system tweeted in early January just half the total COVID-19-positive patients were admitted because of the virus.

The governors of Massachusetts and California also have taken similar steps in recent weeks.

The increase of incidental cases also does not take away from the fact hospitals in Iowa and across the nation faced serious challenges to their capacity during the most recent surge this winter.

Experts say omicron is more contagious than previous coronavirus variants, meaning it infected a high number of individuals and thus resulted in a higher number of patients needing hospitalization.

At the same time, health care providers say they are seeing elevated levels of individuals with worsening chronic medical conditions seeking care. Some experts have theorized delayed care during the early stages of the pandemic has resulted in deteriorating health for these patients.

It should be noted the designation as an incidental COVID-19 case does not offer any insight on the severity of the patient’s illness. These patients could be asymptomatic, or their infection with the virus could exacerbate already problematic medical conditions.

Hospital officials across the country also noted that regardless of severity of their illness, all COVID-19 patients require more hospital resources, such as personal protective equipment and isolated rooms.

These patients also increase staffing issues as providers caring for COVID-19 patients aren’t able to treat non-infected patients.

Conclusion

This latest increase in incidental cases is a change from previous coronavirus surges, when the vast majority of COVID-19 patients were hospitalized because of their infection. That’s still the case for many patients nationwide, but overall Reynolds is correct that the dynamic is changing in Iowa as well.

Also, she is correct on the specific percentage points she stated, per the state public health department.

Reynolds earns an A.

Criteria

The Fact Checker team checks statements made by an Iowa political candidate/officeholder or a national candidate/officeholder about Iowa, or in ads that appear in our market.

Claims must be independently verifiable. We give statements grades from A to F based on accuracy and context.

If you spot a claim you think needs checking, email us at factchecker@thegazette.com.

Members of the Fact Checker team are Elijah Decious, Erin Jordan, Marissa Payne and Michaela Ramm. This Fact Checker was researched and written by Michaela Ramm.