Iowa reports 33 COVID deaths in past week

New booster shots will be ready soon, FDA says

Aug. 31, 2022 3:03 pm, Updated: Sep. 1, 2022 4:22 am

Hadley Jasper, 6, of Marion, grips a squeeze ball as certified medical assistant Maitland Sieren gives her a COVID-19 vaccination Nov. 3, 2021, at the University of Iowa Stead Family Children's Hospital Pediatrics-Cedar Rapids. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)

Iowa on Wednesday reported 33 new, confirmed COVID-19 deaths in the past week, up from 25 deaths the previous week.

Linn County reported two virus-related deaths in the past week, bringing its pandemic death toll to 618. Johnson County reported no COVID-19 deaths. Polk County saw the most virus deaths — 6 — of any Iowa county.

To date, 9,940 Iowans have died from COVID-19 since the pandemic began in March 2020.

On Wednesday, the Food and Drug Administration authorized the first redesign of the coronavirus vaccines since late 2020. The new boosters will target Omicron subvariants.

The new boosters could become available next week according to the FDA.

The agency cleared two boosters tweaked to fight the BA.5 variant of Omicron. One is made by Pfizer and BioNTech for people as young as 12. The other one by Moderna is designed for adults.

New cases

On Wednesday, the state also reported 4,908 new COVID-19 cases in the past week, an increase from the 4,802 reported the previous week.

Since the start of the pandemic, Iowa has reported 842,647 COVID-19 cases. The actual total is likely higher, given the availability of at-home test kits, which are not reported to the state.

Linn County reported 384 new cases in the past week, up from the previous week’s 350. To date, the county had reported 59,476 cases since March 2020.

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Johnson County saw 293 new cases in the past week, a decrease from 310 the previous week. The county’s total number of cases is 41,323.

Hospitalizations

The number of Iowans hospitalized with COVID-19 was basically flat, with 264 admissions reported in the past week, compared to 265 the previous week.

The number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care decreased from 30 to 21, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Vaccinations

As of Aug. 1, 59.2 percent of Iowans are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. That percentage is 65.8 percent in Linn County and 70 percent in Johnson County.

The state will update those numbers in early September.

Comments: (319) 398-8255; gage.miskimen@thegazette.com