Wednesday, April 7, 2021

Dubuque County: 55 New Positive Individuals, No New Deaths, and 369 More Completed Vaccinations.

Iowa: 763 New Positive Individuals, 1 New Death, and 16,792 More Completed Vaccinations.

Available Vaccination Appointments

As of 1 p.m. today, COVID vaccinations appointments were available at the following Dubuque County vaccine providers:

Please keep any appointment you schedule or contact the provider to cancel if you must. Remember that if you get the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, it's critical that you receive the second dose. Consider helping friends and family schedule appointments. We're all in this together.

For assistance making an appointment, call the Dubuque County Sleeves Up! Call Center at 563.690.MAKE(6253). For links to all Dubuque County vaccine providers, visit www.dubuquecounty.org/sleevesup

COVID Variant Cases Increasing in Iowa

The CDC reports that the B.1.1.7 variant and others seem to spread more easily and quickly than other variants, which may lead to more cases of COVID-19. An increase in the number of cases will put more strain on health care resources, lead to more hospitalizations, and potentially more deaths.

Variants are another reason we need to keep wearing masks, continue social distancing, washing hands frequently, and staying home when ill. Remember, children are still vulnerable to the virus and will be for some time because they are not yet eligible to be vaccinated.

So far, studies suggest that antibodies generated through vaccination with currently authorized vaccines recognize these variants. This is being closely investigated and more studies are underway.