(Johnston) Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, at her daily briefing this morning, reported 146 additional positive cases of COVID-19, bringing the total to 2,141 positive cases.
The Governor reported 660 negative tests bringing the total to 8,534 negative cases. The State Hygienic Lab has 2,588 tests available, and 987 Iowans have recovered for a recovery rate of 46-percent and seven additional deaths bringing the total to 60 fatalities. Forty-nine percent of all Iowa deaths came from long term healthcare facilities.
The Governor said across all RMCC regions, 175 COVID-19 patients are hospitalized, 24 patients admitted in the past 24 hours and 84 in ICU’s, and 48 individuals on ventilators. Currently, 4,071 inpatient beds are available, 396 ICU beds, and 694 ventilators are available for patient care.
Reynolds announced this morning of a new opportunity for the state called “Test Iowa.” This is an initiative that will allow extensive scale testing and contact tracing across the state.
Additionally, the state is preparing to conduct serology testing through two labs in the state. This is the antibody test that tells if a person has already had and recovered from COVID-19.
Reynolds says the state’s ability to provide more testing allows them to capture more data about the virus, to better understand the activity in Iowa. Reynolds says the more we know about COVID-19, the better the state can manage it until a vaccine is available.
The Governor also initiated additional mitigation in Region 6, the state’s COVID-19 Hotspot. This includes Linn County. We will have more on that story shortly.
