The Johnson County Public Health Department (JCPH) announced the first confirmed case of monkeypox in Johnson County on Tuesday evening. It is the fifth confirmed case of the virus in Iowa. JCPH is working with the Iowa Department of Public Health “to investigate the circumstances of exposure and inform close contacts,” JCPH said in a […]
Johnson County Department of Public Health
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COVID-19: Gov. Reynolds says ‘We need to move on,’ IDPH reports another 172 deaths
“It’s time to end it and move on,” Gov. Kim Reynolds told reporters at the Iowa State Capitol on Wednesday when asked about her decision to stop classifying COVID-19 as a public health emergency next week. “And we need to treat it [COVID-19] like we do other viruses. So, the Department of Public Health will […]
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Only 19% of the state’s 5-11 year-olds fully vaccinated against COVID; Iowa Republicans advance bill to ban vaccine requirement in schools and childcare centers
The number of new cases of COVID-19 in the Iowa Department of Health’s weekly update declined for the second week in a row, possibly indicating the surge driven by the spread of the Omicron variant in the state is now receding. According to IDPH, there were 22,730 newly confirmed cases of the virus over the […]
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Free rapid COVID-19 tests will be available starting Jan. 19
Starting next week, the federal government will begin distributing free COVID-19 rapid tests through a new website, covidtests.gov. The site will launch on Wednesday, Jan. 19, and “tests will typically ship within 7-12 days of ordering,” according to a written statement published by the White House on Friday. The tests are free and so is […]
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COVID-19: Iowa surpasses 8,000 deaths; Gov. Reynolds says Iowa is ‘better off’ because of her policies
Johnson County Public Health suspended its routine case investigation and contact tracing for newly reported cases of COVID-19 because the ongoing surge in virus spread has overwhelmed its ability to conduct those investigations and tracing in an effective manner. “During the past week, there has been a 250% increase in cases from the previous week,” […]
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ICCSD changes its COVID-19 quarantine policy amid rising rates
The Iowa City Community School District Board of Directors voted during its meeting on Tuesday to relax the district’s standards for when students need to quarantine due to potential exposure to COVID-19. ICCSD had been using the standards recommended by the CDC and Johnson County Public Health and the directors voted 6-1 to switch to […]
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Johnson County Public Health offers advice regarding B117 variant of COVID-19
Following the Iowa Department of Public Health’s announcement on Monday that three cases of the B117 variant of the coronavirus had been detected in Iowa — two in Johnson County and one in Bremer County — Johnson County Public Health put out a brief statement. “This particular variant has been detected in a number of […]
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Vaccine dashboard added to state’s COVID-19 site as more Iowans become eligible for shots
The Iowa Department of Public Health added a new page containing vaccine information to its COVID-19 information site on Friday night, just before almost 20 percent of Iowa’s population became eligible for the vaccine on Monday. Starting Feb. 1, approximately 530,000 Iowans who are 65 and older, as well as 130,000 people in Tier 1 […]
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Opening vaccine eligibility to all Iowa seniors could bring ‘chaos’ — here’s Johnson County’s plan
Johnson County residents 65 and older, and those in Tier 1 of Phase 1B of the state’s vaccination plan, become eligible to receive the first of their two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine on Monday, but they shouldn’t count on getting their jabs right away, the Johnson County Public Health Department said in a statement […]
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Iowa should begin distributing 172,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines before the end of December
Iowa should receive 172,000 doses of the two COVID-19 vaccines currently under consideration for emergency use approval by the end of the month, Gov. Kim Reynolds said during her news conference on Thursday. The FDA will issue a decision on whether to approve use of a vaccine by Pfizer on a emergency basis on Dec. […]
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Johnson County has confirmed more than 300 new COVID-19 cases in four days
“Over the past four days we have seen a surge of [COVID-19] cases reported to us, totally over 300, and primarily in younger persons,” Johnson County Public Health Director Dave Koch said in a written statement on Wednesday. “We anticipate this trend to continue.” Koch stressed the importance of social distancing and other simple mitigation […]
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Local business leaders urge people to wear face masks as Johnson County sees a record-setting increase in COVID-19 cases
“Rest assured, we’re at a very, very critical moment — a pivotal point, if you will — where we’re seeing a very large spike in cases in Johnson County,” University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics CEO Suresh Gunasekaran said on Thursday. “Every single day for the last week, we’ve seen this increase.” Gunasekaran was speaking […]
