Thread by @SenatorRobHogg

June 18

Another 7 deaths from COVID-19 were reported in Iowa today, bringing total since March 24 to 677.

Deaths were reported in Woodbury (2), Black Hawk, Dallas, Henry, Louisa, and Polk.

Please mourn the dead, support their loved ones and caregivers, & help stop the spread.

As of 10:10 am, the Iowa Dep't of Public Health has not updated hospitalization numbers.

There were 355 confirmed new cases of COVID-19 today, bringing the total to 24,735 (+1.5%).

This was on 5,191 tests for a test rate of 6.8% - too many new cases and test rate is too high.

Still no update on hospitalization numbers as of 10:40 am.

For the 77 counties where Gov. Reynolds first loosened restrictions on May 1, they were up 171 new cases to 7,589 total (+2.3% in single day).

That's 48 out of 49 days they have increased faster than state as a whole.

Biggest increases in the 77 counties:

Story: Up 38 to 329 on 224 tests (test rate of 17.0%)
Pottawattamie: Up 22 to 549 on 208 tests (10.6%)
Buena Vista: Up 11 to 1623 on 25 tests (44.0%)
Dickinson: Up 10 to 176 on 47 tests (21.3%)

These new cases and test rates are too high!

On June 6, I warned about Story County based on the daily data showing it was "new to fastest increasing counties" with a test rate of 14.1%. "Watch it!," I said. Story was up 12 to 140 that day. Today, only 12 days later, it has 329 cases.

On May 29, I warned about Dickinson based on data that showed that it and Emmet had added 16 new cases over three days on only 58 tests (test rate of 27.6%).

Since then, it has increased from 19 to 176 cases, and its test rate is still too high.

Other biggest increases in 77 counties:

Sioux: Up 9 to 372 (95 tests)
Carroll: Up 6 to 63 (94 tests)
Hamilton: Up 6 to 135 (only 33 tests!)
Plymouth: Up 6 to 211 (86 tests)
Crawford: Up 5 to 628 (59 tests)
Cerro Gordo: Up 4 to 53 (59 tests)
Floyd: Up 3 to 24 (only 19 tests!)

Butler: Up 3 to 30 (56 tests)
Humboldt: Up 3 to 37 (only 17 tests!)
Greene: Up 3 to 26 (only 29 tests!)

17 counties had two new cases: Boone, Cass, Clarke, Clinton, Davis, Emmet, Franklin, Hancock, Keokuk, Mills, Monona, O'Brien, Pocahontas, Sac, Wapello, Webster, Wright.

13 of these counties had one new case: Calhoun, Clay, Delaware, Grundy, Harrison, Jones, Lyon, Mitchell, Page, Ringgold, Union, Warren, Worth.

Overall, 44 of the 77 counties had new cases reported.

Adams, Decatur, Hardin, Monroe, and Van Buren were each adjusted down one.

Now for the 22 counties where Gov. Reynolds initially maintained restrictions:

Yesterday, I asked "What's going on in Linn and Johnson? A combined 21 new cases on 452 tests (4.6%) - that's our most new cases since May 7."

Today, we had even more (43) on 545 tests (7.9%).

Only 6 of the 22 counties had no new cases: Allamakee, Des Moines, Fayette, Louisa, Poweshiek, Tama.

4 had one new case: Benton, Henry, Iowa, Washington.

Muscatine had two new cases.

Dubuque was up 3 to 396 (190 tests).

But Jasper was up 4 to 287 (on only 33 tests!)

Bremer: Up 6 to 81 (only 29 tests!)
Scott: Up 7 to 418 (169 tests)
Marshall: Up 8 to 952 (only 44 tests!)
Dallas: Up 12 to 1048 (185 tests)
Black Hawk: Up 12 to 1853 (197 tests)
Woodbury: Up 13 to 3035 (131 tests)

Too many cases and test rates too high.

. . .

Linn: Up 19 to 1048 (312 tests)
Johnson: Up 24 to 685 (233 tests)
Polk: Up 67 to 5297 (941 tests)

This is far from over. Some counties (Polk) need to stop the first wave, others (Linn and Johnson) need to act quickly to avoid a COVID-19 resurgence.

#SafetyFirst