Iowa, Dubuque County, & Dubuque Again Designated COVID-19 Red Zones by White House Task Force

The White House Coronavirus Task Force has again designated the state of Iowa, Dubuque County, and the city of Dubuque as COVID-19 "red zones." Red zones are areas with both new cases above 100 per 100,000 population and lab test positivity rates above 10 percent over the last week. The task force’s report is dated Sept. 13.

Dubuque County is one of 17 red zone counties in Iowa and Dubuque is one of five red zone metro areas. Iowa is in the red zone for cases, indicating more than 100 new cases per 100,000 population last week, with the third highest rate in the country. Iowa is in the yellow zone for test positivity, indicating a rate between 5 percent and 10 percent, with the 16th highest rate in the country.

Recommendations for red zones provided in the report include:

• Establish a statewide mask mandate. "COVID-19 is being brought into nursing homes through community transmission. Review and improve infection control practices at nursing homes to stop the introduction of COVID-19."
• Develop a plan for increased surveillance of silent community spread.
• Establish weekly surveillance among critical populations to monitor degree of community spread among K-12 teachers; staff working at nursing homes, assisted living, and other congregate living settings; prison staff; and first responders.

CLICK HERE to read the Iowa section of the Sept. 13 report from the White House Coronavirus Task Force.

45 New Cases and Two Deaths in Dubuque County, 850 New Cases and 13 Deaths Statewide

24-HOUR CHANGES & NEW TOTALS  
(11 a.m. yesterday to 11 a.m. today): 

POSITIVE CASES 

• Dubuque County: 45 new cases. Total confirmed cases to date = 2,506
• Iowa: 850 new cases. Total confirmed cases to date = 76,975

Total Case Count Milestones:

 2,500 cases = Sept. 17

2,000 cases = Aug. 30

1,500 cases = Aug. 2

1,000 cases = July 14

500 cases = June 28

DEATHS 

• Dubuque County: 2 additional deaths. Total deaths to date = 40

• Iowa: 13 additional deaths. Total deaths to date = 1,248

TESTING & POSITIVITY RATE (As reported by the Iowa Department of Public Health)

Dubuque County:

• 257 more individuals tested. Total residents tested to date = 27,106
• Dubuque County Test Positivity Rate: 14-day average = 11.9%, average to date = 9.2%.

Iowa:

• 6,705 more individuals tested. Total Iowa residents tested to date = 719,632
• Iowa Test Positivity Rate: 14-day average = 8.4%, average to date = 10.7%

HOSPITALIZATIONS 

• Dubuque County: Hospitalized = 16 as of Sept. 15. Same as Sept. 14.
• Iowa: Currently hospitalized = 271. (20 fewer than yesterday.)

RECOVERIES

• Dubuque County: New recoveries = 18. Total number of recoveries = 1,851
• Iowa: New recoveries = 768. Total number of recoveries = 55,776

A positive COVID-19 patient is considered recovered if it has been at least 10 days since symptoms first appeared, they have gone at least 24 hours with no fever without fever-reducing medication, and symptoms have improved.

LONG-TERM CARE FACILITY OUTBREAKS

• Dubuque County: One new long-term care facility outbreak was reported at Sunnycrest Manor (7 positive cases).
• Iowa: 3 outbreaks (1 more than reported yesterday)

For the most current information on COVID-19, visit https://coronavirus.iowa.gov. For COVID-19 information specific to Dubuque County, visit www.dubuquecounty.org/COVID19

Governor Signs New Public Health Proclamation

Governor Reynoldssigned a new proclamation on Tuesday continuing the Public Health Disaster Emergency. In addition to adjusting mitigation efforts in certain counties, the proclamation continues to strongly encourage all Iowans two or older to wear a mask or other face covering when in public settings, especially in circumstances when it is not possible to remain six feet away from others outside their household, unless it is unsafe to do so because of health or disability. For more information, visit

 https://governor.iowa.gov/press-release/gov-reynolds-signs-new-public-health-proclamation-adjusting-mitigation-efforts

Media Contact
Randy Gehl, Public Information Officer
Email Randy Gehl

This message is from the Dubuque County Public Health Incident Management Team, which includes staff from the from the Dubuque County Health Department, City of Dubuque Health Department, Dubuque County Emergency Management Agency, and the Dubuque Visiting Nurse Association.