With photo — Daily Freeman-Journal photo by Anne Blankenship Due to a significant increase in the number of COVID-19 cases, Hamilton County Public Health, located in Shashi Station, 1610 Collins St., will once again offer testing. Tests will be administered on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings and individuals need to call the health department to schedule a test, 515-832-9565.

COVID-19 cases are again on the rise across Hamilton County. In the past week, the health department has seen a dramatic increase in the number of positive cases..

Shelby Kroona, Hamilton County Public Health administrator, shared the news with the Board of Supervisors Tuesday morning during the board’s regular session.

Cases have risen from an average of 50 cases over a 14-day period to 191 in 14 days, according to Kroona.

“In the past 7 days we have had 126 positive cases,” she said. “In the past 3 days, there have been 24 positive cases.

“These cases were people who either tested at a hospital, a clinic, a doctor’s office — the ones that are reportable to the University Hygienic lab and the Iowa Department of Public Health,” said Kroona.

That number doesn’t include those who have self-tested with home test kits, she said. Results from those tests do not get reported to state health officials.

Kroona said that the state updated the number of cases which were determined to be the omicron variant.

“The state is at 73 percent for the omicron variant,” she said. “It’s a very highly transmissible variant.”

Due to the growing demand for COVID tests, Kroona said the health department will again offer testing at their office. Testing will be available Tuesday and Wednesday mornings and individuals need to call to make an appointment.

Her department was given permission to use some rapid antigen tests that the agency had on hand. The antigen tests can only be administered to those individuals who are exhibiting COVID symptoms, she said. PCR tests can be used for individuals who have had an exposure to COVID.

“The technician who is doing the test will determine at the time of the test if you will receive a rapid antigen or a PCR test,” she said.

Kroona said her department is also receiving calls about the Biden Administration’s decision on home test kits. Starting Saturday, private health insurers will be required to cover up to eight home COVID-19 tests per month for people on their plans. The Biden administration announced the change Monday.

“We don’t have the home kits available at our office. We’ve had people stopping in to pick them up,” she said. “What we have is the TestIowa saliva kits that you can do at home. It’s a PCR test that can then be dropped off at a UPS pickup site. It’s a very reliable test, but it does take up to 72 hours to get the results back.”

Other callers have reached out to public health for notes to employers.

“We’ve had some people call and tell us they have tested positive using a home kit and now what do they do. We go through the isolation guidelines with them,” she said. “But we cannot provide work releases or notes to employers because we cannot verify the at-home test.”

She said she recommends the individual repeat the test with a PCR test at the health department.

“The PCR test is really the gold standard for COVID testing,” she said.

Kroona said there is still vaccine available for those wishing to have an initial, second or booster dose.

“The health department has a clinic every Wednesday. They can call and make an appointment,” she said. Appointments can be made by calling 515-832-9565.