DES MOINES, Iowa — As Polk County COVID-19 activity surges past levels the country has not seen since last fall, the head of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services applauded officials in Iowa's largest county for their efforts in lowering the spread of the virus and getting Iowans vaccinated.
Secretary Xavier Becerra met with leaders from the Polk County Health Department Thursday to provide an update from the Biden administration on its strategy to fight the virus, which has been raging in Iowa since March 2020.
"Almost 70% of our eligible population has decided that vaccines are the right course of action to keep Polk County healthy, and our health care workers are truly grateful for this," Polk County Supervisor Angela Connolly said.
Eddy recounted the data released from PCHD on Tuesday on current hospitalizations.
"Our hospitals today have 120 COVID-19 patients. On Tuesday that number was 110. We have not seen a trend in COVID-19 hospitalizations like this since the last COVID-19 surge in October of 2020," PCHD Director Helen Eddy said.
After thanking Polk County officials and health care workers for their efforts, Becerra pushed for everyone else to step up.
"The vaccine works. If you are dying in America today from COVID, 99 percent chance you're unvaccinated. I don't know if that fact can be amplified more," Becerra said. "But if you don't believe what's going on, go to the hospitals, to the ICU rooms. Or worse, go to the morgues and see who are the people who are dying from COVID."
Becerra declined to say outright if U.S. employers should mandate vaccines for workers.
"Again, as I said, hard to engage in an argument with anyone on this issue. Except if you've got the facts and the science on your side. Those are great allies to have in any type of debate about safety and protection," Becerra said. "I would want to see every employer have a safe workplace, for their employees, and for their patrons. And I believe they should do everything the law permits them to do to make sure we're all safe. Because if you're not safe, I'm not safe."
He reaffirmed the Biden administration's preference for mask requirements in schools. In Iowa, it is illegal for schools to mandate facial coverings following a law signed in May.
"The safest course of action, if you're a parent, if you're a teacher, if you're a superintendent of schools, a principle is to make sure every child is safe," Becerra said. "Why you would not get vaccinated with all the facts in front of you is something that only someone who's a parent can respond to. But I certainly will tell you that I hope that every school district recognizes its responsibility to protect its students."
79% of COVID hospitalizations are among those who are unvaccinated, the Iowa Department of Public Health reported Wednesday.
Becerra said everyone needs to understand that "just because your vaccinated doesn't mean you shouldn't wear a mask."
"We need to protect ourselves from COVID, but certainly this variant, the delta variant, and we also have to make sure we're not unknowingly passing on the virus to others, and that's where the mask becomes so important," the secretary said. "You wish we could say that as soon as we're vaccinated we [can] go back to doing everything the way we wish, even if everyone else hasn't vaccinated. That's not the case."
Health officials urge everyone to continue to practice mitigation strategies to stop the spread of COVID-19:
- Get vaccinated
- Wear a mask as the CDC recommends
- Stay home when you're sick
- Wash your hands frequently
- Practice social distancing