Three more people living in Woodbury County have died of complications of COVID-19, for 85 in all. There were more than 60 new cases for a total topping 6,600 since the start of the pandemic.
The Siouxland District Health Department put out a weekly trend report this morning. It says Woodbury County saw an increase in positive test results in the week that ended on October 11th. This is a change in direction from the past two weeks. Health officials say noncompliance with isolation and quarantine guidelines are the reason for the higher number of new cases. The 14-day positivity rate for Woodbury County is 15.5%.
They say people who have been tested are expected to quarantine until they receive the results of their tests and if the results come back positive, they need to continue to isolate for a least 10 days following the onset of symptoms or 10 days from testing if they are asymptomatic. They also need to be fever free for 24 hours and have a reduction in symptoms.
Plus, cases involving schools appear to be originating from activities and events scheduled outside of the classroom such as wedding receptions and social outings. Plus, the largest growth in new cases come from the 20 to 20 year-old age category. Officials say if you attend events most likely there is a positive person also attending and ignored symptoms are the source of much community spread.
The number of people hospitalized in the state is 468, that is down slightly from the day before but nearly twice as many patients from two months ago.
Sioux City’s two hospitals are treating 67 patients who have tested positive for the novel coronavirus with 54 hospitalized due to COVID-19 alone. The President and CEO of UnityPoint Health-St. Luke’s says his facility had only one to two patients in the middle of August.
Reynolds said during a news conference on Wednesday hospitals have indicated they ae still doing OK and managing the disease, but admits there is still significant spread of the virus.
Republican Sen. Joni Ernst and Democratic challenger Theresa Greenfield differed sharply about whether systematic racism exists and whether either had benefited from white privilege.
The two candidates joined for their final televised debate as thousands of Iowans were already voting by absentee ballot and the Nov. 3 election was less than three weeks away.
The candidates spoke on numerous topics from remote locations, with Greenfield at an apprenticeship training facility in Altoona and Ernst in Washington. The race is among the most expensive in the nation and could be a key to whether Republicans can retain control of the U.S. Senate.
Republican U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska has told constituents that President Donald Trump mocks Christian evangelicals in private and “kisses dictators’ butts.”
Sasse made the comments during a telephone town hall this week when he was asked why he has been so critical of a president of his own party.
Sasse is running for a second term representing the reliably red state. He criticized Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic and said Trump’s family has treated the presidency “like a business opportunity.”
The comments were first reported by the Washington Examiner after it obtained an audio recording of the senator’s comments.
