Hospitalizations in Iowa increased to 355 for that week compared to 201 the previous week. | Sharon McCutcheon/Unsplash
Hospitalizations in Iowa increased to 355 for that week compared to 201 the previous week. | Sharon McCutcheon/Unsplash
Polk County officials are urging residents to wear masks as rates of COVID-19 hospitalizations across the state rise rapidly.
Iowa Public Radio reports that on Aug. 11, health officials announced that Polk County experienced a 65% increase in new infections in the previous week, while the state saw a nearly 170% increase.
“University of Iowa Hospitals reports nearly all (90%+) COVID inpatients are unvaccinated,” Vanessa Miller, Gazette reporter, wrote in an Aug. 13 Twitter post. “Today UIHC has 17 adult inpatients and 4 pediatric inpatients with COVID. Typically UIHC has 0 or 1 pediatric inpatients.”
According to data from the the state's health department, hospitalizations in Iowa increased to 355 for that week compared to 201 the previous week.
A weekly White House report on the pandemic showed that for the week of Aug. 9, rates of new COVID cases increased 30% and the rate of hospitalizations rose by 46%, Quad City Times reported.
Iowa health officials say that the increase in numbers is due to the highly-contagious Delta variant of the COVID virus and slowing rates of people receiving the vaccine. Federal vaccine data shows that approximately 59% of Iowa residents eligible to receive the vaccine have received one of the available vaccines.
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