Wednesday, Aug. 18, 2021

112 New Positive Individuals, 1 New Death, and 467 More Completed Vaccinations Since Aug. 11

Dubuque County Board of Health Recommendations

The Dubuque County Board of Health recently made the unanimous decision to recommend that all Dubuque County residents follow current CDC guidance, including:

• Unvaccinated people above the age of 2 should wear a mask in public indoor settings, regardless of CDC COVID-19 community transmission level.
  
  
• Fully vaccinated people should wear a mask in public indoor settings in areas of substantial or high levels CDC COVID-19 community transmission. (Dubuque County remains at HIGH community transmission.)
  
  - Wearing a mask is most important if you have a weakened immune system or if, because of your age or an underlying medical condition, you are at increased risk for severe disease, or if someone in your household has a weakened immune system, is at increased risk for severe disease, or is unvaccinated. If this applies to you or your household, you might choose to wear a mask regardless of the level of transmission in your area.
  
  
• Fully vaccinated people who have come into close contact with someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 should be tested 3-5 days after exposure, and to wear a mask in public indoor settings for 14 days or until they receive a negative test result.
  
  
• All teachers, staff, students, and visitors to preK-12 schools regardless of vaccination status) wear masks on school grounds.
  
  

Joint Statement from HHS Public Health and Medical Experts on COVID-19 Booster Shots

Today, public health and medical experts from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released the following statement on the Administration’s plan for COVID-19 booster shots for the American people.

KEY POINTS

The COVID-19 vaccines authorized in the United States continue to be remarkably effective in reducing risk of severe disease, hospitalization, and death, even against the widely circulating Delta variant.

The available data make very clear that protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection begins to decrease over time following the initial doses of vaccination, and in association with the dominance of the Delta variant, we are starting to see evidence of reduced protection against mild and moderate disease.

Based on our latest assessment, the current protection against severe disease, hospitalization, and death could diminish in the months ahead, especially among those who are at higher risk or were vaccinated during the earlier phases of the vaccination rollout. 

“We have developed a plan to begin offering these booster shots this fall subject to FDA conducting an independent evaluation and determination of the safety and effectiveness of a third dose of the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines and CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) issuing booster dose recommendations based on a thorough review of the evidence."

"We are prepared to offer booster shots for all Americans beginning the week of September 20 and starting 8 months after an individual’s second dose. At that time, the individuals who were fully vaccinated earliest in the vaccination rollout, including many health care providers, nursing home residents, and other seniors, will likely be eligible for a booster. We would also begin efforts to deliver booster shots directly to residents of long-term care facilities at that time, given the distribution of vaccines to this population early in the vaccine rollout and the continued increased risk that COVID-19 poses to them".

“We also want to emphasize the ongoing urgency of vaccinating the unvaccinated in the U.S. and around the world. Nearly all the cases of severe disease, hospitalization, and death continue to occur among those not yet vaccinated at all."

Read the full statement at https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2021/08/18/joint-statement-hhs-public-health-and-medical-experts-covid-19-booster-shots.html

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DUBUQUE COUNTY CHANGES & TOTALS  

(Aug. 11 to Aug. 18) 

POSITIVE INDIVIDUALS 

https://coronavirus.iowa.gov/pages/case-counts

• 112 new positive individuals since Aug. 11
• Total positive individuals to date = 13,875

ACTIVE CASES

• 278 active cases in Dubuque County (85 more than Aug. 11)

COMMUNITY TRANSMISSION RATE

https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view

• The CDC continues to rate Dubuque County at the HIGH level of community transmission of COVID-19.
  
  
• 7-Day New Case Rate per 100K Population through Aug. 16 = 95.57
  
  
• Percent Positivity through Aug. 12 = 11.2%

HOSPITALIZATIONS 

https://coronavirus.iowa.gov/pages/rmcc-data

• Dubuque County Residents Hospitalized = 4 as of Aug. 11.

DEATHS   

https://coronavirus.iowa.gov/pages/outcome-analysis-deaths

• 1 new death.
• Total deaths related to COVID to date = 216 
• Underlying Cause Deaths = 196, Contributing Factor Deaths = 20

For information on local COVID-19 testing options, visit www.dubuquecounty.org/COVID19

Please do not reply to this message.  If you have questions, please call 563.556.6200.