(Des Moines, Iowa) – As cases of COVID-19 have increased across the country, there have been more reported cases of the virus in Iowa in recent weeks, according to the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services. The Iowa Capital Dispatch says the DHHS report shows positive COVID-19 tests in the state were at 20.7% from the week of July 28 through Aug. 3 — the highest proportion in more than a year, according to department data, and significantly higher than the 9.7% in the same week in 2023.

While still low, COVID-19 cases were responsible for 2.2% of emergency room visits and 2% of inpatient visits in the reported time frame. That’s up from 1.2% of ER visits and 1.7% of inpatient visits during the same period last year. There were two reported deaths in the week, according to HHS data. Four deaths were reported during the same period a year ago.

The rise in COVID-19 numbers are still far below reported figures from earlier in the pandemic, but are an increase compared to recent months. The Iowa surge is part of a national trend, as COVID-19 is being reported at higher rates across all regions of the U.S. in the past month.

Health experts are expecting coronavirus cases to continue to rise. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) rated Iowa’s COVID-19 epidemic status as “likely growing,” one of 25 states where the organization says the virus is predicted to increasingly spread. The CDC labeled Iowa’s neighboring states of Minnesota, Illinois and South Dakota as having “growing” rates of COVID-19.

Iowa is also one of the states seeing an increase in COVID-19 wastewater viral activity, according to CDC data — one of the ways the national organization measures the spread of the virus. Wastewater treatment plants report data on coronavirus rates detectable in water, a way of monitoring that can detect the spread of viruses before a person goes to a hospital or undergoes clinical testing, according to the CDC, as well as in cases when infected people are asymptomatic.

There is currently “high” viral activity in Iowa, with nine wastewater sites reporting. As cases pick up, public health officials recommend staying up to date on COVID-19 vaccinations, with the CDC recommending people age 5 and older getting one dose of the updated 2023-2024 vaccine to protect against serious illness. According to Iowa HHS data, 15.6% of Iowans are immunized as of Aug. 8.