Michaela Ramm

Eric Bradley, an environmental health manager at Scott County Public Health, will take on a new role at Linn County Public Health as the deputy director later this month.

The first young Iowans got the first shots of the two-dose COVID-19 vaccine Wednesday following the approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for kids aged 5-11 years. For those kids, the shots represented the first step to returning to normal.

More than 7,600 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Iowa in past week. Also, virus deaths surpass 7,000 in Iowa since March 2020.

With approval from federal officials, pediatricians, public health officials, pharmacies and other vaccine providers across the state have begun administering COVID-19 vaccines to children aged five to 11 years.

Nov. 1 was the deadline for UnityPoint Health workers to be vaccinated against the coronavirus or request an exemption. Employees that fail to be vaccinated and don’t meet the criteria for an exemption will be placed on administrative leave.

MercyOne, the health care system that operates hospitals and clinics across Iowa, is extending its COVID-19 vaccination mandate to Nov. 12. Under a new state law, employees previously denied a religious or medical exemption have the opportunity to file for a waiver.

Researchers surveyed more than 5,000 Iowans in small towns across the state to gauge how the COVID-19 pandemic effected them. They found while the mental health impact was greater in the smallest towns, larger communities -- including meat packing towns -- were more likely to report worsening physical health and financial strains during the pandemic.

Dewey Dale Wilfong III, 28, was shot by a Tama County deputy Thursday evening after officers responded to a call of shots being fired.

To date, no Iowa City VA Health Care System employee has left their role or faced disciplinary action as a result of a federal mandate for all workers to be fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. Front line workers had until Oct. 18 to get the shots or request accomodation. All other VA employees have until Nov. 22.

Federal approval of COVID-19 vaccines for children aged 5 to 11 is expected by the first week in November, officials say. In the meantime, experts with the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics answer questions about the shots.

For the second week in a row, at least 100 COVID-19 deaths were confirmed by the state public health department. As of Wednesday, the statewide death toll since March 2020 totals 6,965.

Iowa, along with other states, is receiving an advanced shipment of 99,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses by Nov. 4 to facilitate a quick start to the new phase of the nationwide vaccination campaign. Federal approval of the Pfizer vaccine for children aged 5 to 11 is expected by the first week in November.

Federal officials are expected to approve COVID-19 vaccines for children ages 5-11 by next month. What questions do you have about vaccines for children? Send them our way and we’ll work to answer them.

A month has passed since federal officials adjusted the distribution system for monoclonal antibody treatments. In that time, no provider has reported issues with meeting patient needs, state public health officials say.

Starting Sunday, Oct. 24, Iowa residents in the 319 and 515 area codes will need to dial all 10 digits to make phone calls.