Pottawattamie County Public Health, Monday, reported 10 new COVID-19 cases. The total of COVID-19 cases in Pottawattamie County is now 59. Twenty-five individuals have recovered, 31 are self-isolating at home, one is hospitalized, and there have been two deaths.The 10 new cases are all residents of Council Bluffs.
Those individuals were tested for COVID-19 between April 29 and May 2. Four of the cases are 18-40 years old, five are 41-60 years old, and one is 61-80 years old. Five of the individuals have pre-existing conditions. Four of the new cases had contact with an existing COVID-19 case, and six are the result of community spread. All ten of these individuals are self-isolating at home.
The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH), the Iowa Department of Human Services (DHS), and the Iowa National Guard are opening a temporary testing site today to test Pottawattamie County long term care facility staff. Long term care facilities are at a higher risk of COVID-19 outbreaks than other community settings due to the nature of congregate living. In testing long term care facility staff, IDPH is mitigating the spread of COVID-19 by identifying potential infected staff, and anyone who may have been previously exposed and therefore developed antibodies.
The testing site location is the Mid-America Center, 1 Arena Way. Tests at the site will take place on Tuesday May 5 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Wednesday, May 6 from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tests are given by appointment only and are supported by the long-term care testing strike teams initiative the state is standing up to test nursing home staff.
Note: This is not a TestIowa.com site. Pottawattamie County Public Health continues to conduct contact tracing investigations for each COIVD-19 case. A part of contact tracing is assessing risk to the general public. If