Iowa COVID-19 hospitalizations up, cases slightly down

COVID-19 cases in Iowa are slightly down over the past week, but hospitalizations are up statewide and in Linn and Johnson counties.

There have been 5,768 new cases of COVID-19 reported in the past seven days, down from 5,924 the week before, according to the Iowa Department of Public Health.

Iowa has had 822,356 reported coronavirus cases since the pandemic came to Iowa in early 2020. The actual total is likely higher, given the availability of at-home test kits.

Linn County reported 444 new virus cases in the past week, down from the 519 the week before. Linn County has had 57,966 virus cases so far.

Johnson County added 343 cases, down from 354 last week. The county has seen 40,094 COVID-19 cases to date.

Hospitalizations

Patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in the past week totaled 309, an increase from 249 the week before, according to federal health data.

The number of intensive care patients has nearly doubled, from 22 to 41.

Community transmission

Linn and Johnson counties, like the majority of the state, still are classified as having “high” COVID-19 community transmission levels, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Deaths

In the past week, 35 new deaths were reported in Iowa, according to the state public health department.

In total, 9,817 Iowans have died of COVID-19 since March 2020.

Linn County reported two of the new deaths and Johnson County added one. Linn County has an overall coronavirus death toll of 604, and 156 Johnson County residents have died from the virus.

Vaccinations

The state has removed the CDC interactive Iowa map for vaccinations and instead points to the Iowa Immunization Registry Information System.

As of Aug. 1, the IRIS data reports that 59.2 percent of all Iowans are fully vaccinated.

In Linn County, 65.8 percent of the total county population is fully vaccinated. In Johnson County, that number is 70 percent.

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