Public health officials note increase in COVID-19 in Delta-dominated Linn County

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – Linn County Public Health says COVID-19 cases continue to rise as transmission of the virus remains high.

One of the big lessons from a public information meeting organized by county department officials and local hospitals was the prevalence of the more transmissible delta variant. Linn County provides ongoing updates on its COVID-19 dashboard. According to the data, there are over 1,500 active cases in the county.

Of the cases reported so far in August, 83% have been determined to be the delta variant. New cases, overall, are up almost 13% from last week.

Also on the rise, those who receive their first dose of a vaccine. In the first two weeks of August, the percentage of Linn County’s population that started their vaccine series increased by more than 1.5% to almost 58%. 54.5% percent of the county’s population is fully immunized.

Linn County Public Health said approval of the Pfizer vaccine could make a difference.

“We’ll wait and see if this increases our vaccination rates, but again, this shows the gold standard, best practice Pfizer vaccine has achieved full approval,” said Heather Meador, of the agency. . “It is a safe and effective vaccine.”

As the Food and Drug Administration considers booster injections for the general public, the number of groundbreaking cases in hospitals is increasing. A few weeks ago, at Mercy Medical Center, 15% of patients were fully immunized. Today it is 35%.

Dr Tony Myers, of Mercy, said the most seriously ill are not vaccinated. He said vaccines are still the best tool we have against serious illness and death.

Copyright 2021 KCRG. All rights reserved.