Hunter
05/24/20
The Iowa Department of Health announced 26 new deaths from COVID-19 Saturday, bringng the total to 444.
Another 380 positive cases were reported between 10am Friday and 6am Saturday.
The website that provides details county-by-county and other metrics is down for scheduled maintenance over the weekend. Officials expect it to start updating again Monday morning.
A growing number of complaints about transparency have been observed; Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement reports that a nursing home outbreak in Ottumwa was not reported on the state website for days, until a media outlet questioned the Department of Public Health on Friday.
On Thursday, Black Hawk County Sheriff Tony Thompson called the TestIowa initiative an enormous failure, telling reporters that local officials have been frustrated by slow results and a lack of coordination from the governor’s office. Linn County Health officials sent an email to Governor Kim Reynolds’ team earlier expressing similar frustrations.
The numbers continue to rise as the state further opened up public access to hair salons, barber shops, campgrounds, and other entities. The Washington Post reports that Iowa is one of 24 states that still have uncontrolled spread of coronavirus, and risks a second wave if efforts to mitigate its spread are abandoned.
