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Covid-19 cases continue to rise in Tama County

Governor Kim Reynolds

COVID-19 cases rose to 236 confirmed in Tama County in the latest available report from the Iowa Department of Health at News-Herald deadline. Deaths attributed to the coronavirus in Tama County held at the number of seven victims which had been reported previously.

This increase does not reflect many of the 177 workers who were reported to have tested positive last week at Iowa Premium, the beef packing plant at Tama.

“Positive cases are recorded on the daily map based on county of residence., Amy McCoy, a media spokesperson for the Iowa Department of Health replied to an inquiry on Tuesday morning. It has been reported inn the past by Iowa Premium officials more than 50% of their 850 employees are not Tama County residents.

Governor Kim Reynolds said in her daily news conference on Tuesday 33% of the state-wide daily increase in confirmed cases from Monday to Tuesday was the result of surveillance testing at meat packing plants which included Tama.

Reynolds also disclosed the apparent first testing site in a new state-wide COVID-19 program would be at a long-term care location in Tama on Wednesday, April 22. No spokesperson was available in calls to the Governor’s office to immediately gain more information on the plan for Tama.

Loceil health officials were also without information at noon on Tuesday

A news release only says “Reynolds launched the Test Iowa Initiative to expand testing capacity to limit the spread of COVID-19 in Iowa. The state is partnering with Nomi Health and its subsidiary DOMO which has already launched a similar initiative in the state of Utah.

“Iowa is now the second state in the nation to deploy this ambitious initiative, and starting today I am encouraging Iowans to go to testIowa.com to complete their own health assessment,” said Gov. Reynolds. “This type of information will help Iowans assess eligibility for testing and further inform the state’s response to COVID-19.”