Nearly 100 Die Of COVID-19 In Iowa In A Day

Des Moines IA

18 December, 2020

12:02 PM

Description

the Iowa Capital Dispatch By Perry Beeman December 18, 2020 Nearly 100 people died of COVID-19 in Iowa Thursday, and more than 1,400 were sickened with the illness, the New York Times reported. The state recorded 97 deaths and 1,426 new cases, according to the Times' database. However, the number of new cases has been falling. Iowans are beginning to get vaccinations for the coronavirus, which has disrupted families, businesses, government and the economy for most of the year. The Times reported Iowa's number of new cases had fallen 27% in the past two weeks, averaging 1,598 cases per day. Deaths, on the other hand, have risen 32%. Thursday's total was one of the highest since the pandemic started. Much of the focus has been on nursing homes, which as of Friday morning had 141 current outbreaks. The facilities had reported 5,681 cases and 1,135 deaths associated with those outbreaks. Nursing homes residents and workers will be among the first to get the Pfizer vaccine, which began distribution this week. Widespread shipments of Moderna's vaccine are expected as early as next week. The number of COVID-19 patients in Iowa hospitals continues to fall. The Iowa Department of Public Health on Friday reported 701 patients, down from 746 on Thursday. There were 136 coronavirus patients in intensive care, down from 146 on Thursday. The number of COVID-19 patients admitted in the past 24 hours stood at 96 Friday morning, up a tick from 95 in the previous 24-hour period. The Times reported the number of coronavirus patients hospitalized in Iowa fell 33% in the past two weeks. The state reported that Iowa has seen a 10.4% test positivity rate in the past seven days, and 13.5% over the past two weeks. The percentage of ventilators available at Iowa hospitals has more than doubled in recent weeks, to 77.6%, the health department reported. There were 80 COVID patients on ventilators Friday morning, down from 151 on Nov. 28. Since the pandemic started, Iowa has had 262,210 cases of COVID-19, and 3,451 deaths associated with the virus. Shelby County has had the most deaths per capita in Iowa. Henry County has had the most cases per capita. The Iowa Capital Dispatch is a hard-hitting, independent news organization dedicated to connecting Iowans to their state government and its impact on their lives.