"Talk of Iowa," hosted by Charity Nebbe, is an Iowa Public Radio program. Dr. Cohen is one of Lucas County's senior family practice physicians.
Lucas, where only 44 percent of the population has been vaccinated against the virus, is one of many rural Iowa counties where the situation is similar.
Dr. Cohen reports a steady increase in the number of positive tests during the last several weeks and anticipates a sharper rise in the wake of holiday gatherings. Lucas County reported 24 new cases during the most recent reporting period, ending just after Christmas. In total, 29 of our neighbors have died of the virus since the pandemic began.
No statistics are available at the moment that differentiate the Omega from the Delta variant.
According to Dr. Cohen, 86 percent of positive tests in the county involve unvaccinated people; 14 percent, break-through infections in those who have been vaccinated. Virtually none of those hospitalized here as a result of the virus had been vaccinated, he said.
Of course it's not too late to be vaccinated, or boosted if already vaccinated. Dr. Cohen continues to recommend that, as well avoiding crowds, social distancing and masking --- but encourages use of a higher grade mask than the cloth and paper varieties most of us are using now.
A common response among those who test positive is, "that can't be," or something similar, Dr. Cohen said. As many of us who live in places like Chariton already know, magic thinking is prevalent here.
All in all, it's an interesting and informative listen. Those who need to hear --- and understand --- are unlikely to do so, however.
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