Howdy folks. I thought I was done with Iowa-centric COVID updates and had pretty much signed off on the series awhile back, but...delta and antivaxxers had other ideas. So, here we are. Let’s take a look at what’s going on here in the heartland…
As always with these roundups, source links are at the end of the diary.
- Through June, our 7-day average of new cases had been in just double digits and gradually declining, down into the 60’s per day near the end of the month. Then the uptick began, and now our current 7-day average is in the 190’s/day range — about 3 times what it was a month ago and more than double what it was 2 weeks ago.
- The IDPH under Gov. Kim Reaper...er, Reynolds, ended its daily updates for COVID stats earlier this month (something it had planned on doing for a couple of months), going instead to weekly numbers and trimming some of the information it reports from its website. Because sure, why not? So now as the state sees a surge in cases, we have less current information to work with. Thanks, Kim!
- Because GOP lawmakers across the land suck, 17 GOP members of the Iowa Legislature have sent a letter to Trinity Health, asking them to explain their message to their staff at 7 MercyOne hospitals and 3 associated health clinics that requires all staff to be vaccinated by September 21st. Seems pretty self-explanatory to me, but GOP halfwits seem to equate “Freedom” with “I want to be able to do anything I want, even if it potentially kills other people, because fuck THEIR freedom!” Senator Jason Schilts (R-Dumbass) said he’d like to see the requirement rescinded and further commented “How do we reverse what’s already happened and maybe stop permanently that employers can require a hastily approved and not properly tested product could be put into somebody unwillingly?” Uh, Senator? You’re an idiot. But beyond that, more than 160 million people have gotten the vaccines so far, with negligible side effects. It’s been tested above and beyond what most vaccines and other drugs could ever dream of. Shut up and sit down and let the grownups make the decisions, you idiot manchild. I bet you’re one of the morons who voted for the legislation that prevents school districts from enforcing mask mandates too. You have no credibility with any rational human being.
- A popular Lutheran bible camp, Riverside Bible Camp in Story City, was forced to close down after eight positive COVID cases among its staff. Camp director Chris Dahl said that most staffers had either been vaccinated or had had COVID already. No word on how many of those who tested positive fall into either of those categories. So far, there are no known cases among campers.
- The IDPH is on the verge of throwing out tens of thousands of doses of soon-to-expire vaccine doses unless vaccinations suddenly pick up substantially. Over 38,000 doses expire at the end of this month, and another 178,000 doses expire at the end of August.
- This is from week old information, but I doubt it has changed substantially — Iowa hospitals are, as in other areas, reporting that the vast majority of COVID patients being admitted (more than 90%) are unvaccinated. Most of the relatively few vaccinated COVID patients are older (60+) and have preexisting conditions that make them more vulnerable to the disease.
- Hy-Vee food store and pharmacies plan to offer daily vaccine clinics at the Iowa State Fair from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the West Grand Exhibit area. The state fair runs from August 12-22 this year...unfortunately rather poor timing given the current upswing of cases.
- A study from the University of Iowa hospitals found that COVID patients treated with remdesivir actually spent more time in the hospital than those not treated with the drug, on average 3 days longer. The reason for this doesn’t appear to be due to any side effects of the drug, though, but rather because guidelines call for a 5-to-10-day course of treatment. It was this minimum 5-day course of treatment that appears to have led to the extra days in the hospital. Other studies have shown the drug to have no real benefit, and if it leads to longer rather than shorter hospital stays, the use of it is actually counterproductive because it ties up hospital beds longer — not something you want if there is a surge in cases.
- Davis county “leads” the state in lowest number of vaccinations, with just 29% of the county population vaccinated (the county went for Trump 74% in 2020). Decatur, Lyon, Van Buren, Wayne and Sioux counties are all in 2nd place for that “honor” at 33% each.
- The counties with the highest vaccination rates are Johnson (60%), Linn (54%), Dubuque (53%), Boone (52%) and Polk (52%). 3 of these counties (Johnson, Linn and Polk) went for Biden in 2020, in case you were wondering.
- According to the IDPH website, 41% of positive COVID tests over the past 7 days have been in the under 30 age demographic.
- As of 7/21/21, there were 67 patients hospitalized with COVID symptoms as the primary diagnosis, and a further 39 hospitalized patients with COVID as a secondary diagnosis. 34% of Iowa’s current COVID hospitalizations are under 50 years old.
- As cases have been trending up, deaths have been trending down, with just one COVID death reported since July 16th. Given that deaths lag trends of new cases and hospitalizations by a couple of weeks or so, that may begin to change soon as cases continue to rise.
That’s all for now, folks.
Children sent home from Iowa summer camp after staff COVID-19 outbreak
17 GOP lawmakers ask Iowa health system to explain vaccine policy
The average number of new daily COVID-19 cases in Iowa has more than doubled in the past two weeks
As Iowa Opens Up, COVID-19 Vaccination Rates Continue To Slow
Over 90% of Iowa's hospitalized COVID-19 patients are not vaccinated, hospital officials say
'Hugely disappointing': Iowa may have to toss out tens of thousands of expiring COVID vaccine doses
Hy-Vee to host flu and COVID-19 vaccine clinic at Iowa State Fair
Remdesivir treatment plan kept COVID-19 patients hospitalized longer, University of Iowa research shows
Iowa lags on vaccinations as the number of new COVID-19 cases climbs