DES MOINES, Iowa — The Iowa Department of Public Health has confirmed 44 cases of COVID-19 in the state.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said there were 40 positive tests confirmed at the State Hygienic Lab and four positive tests at national labs.
Officials said there were 642 negative tests at the State Hygienic Lab. The state is unable to track the number of negative tests at national labs at this time.
Three new cases were confirmed in Polk County. Musctaine, Dubuque and Johnson Counties each had one additional case. Officials said two additional people not from Iowa tested positive at Iowa healthcare facilities.
"COVID-19 is unlike anything we've seen before," Reynolds said.
The governor's office said the State Hygienic Lab has the capacity to test for 800 Iowans.
In an effort to prevent contributing to the spread, Reynolds only had a few reporters inside her daily briefings. Most, including Local 5's Rachel Droze, participated through a conference call.
The governor pointed out Thursday how we're all starting to realize the simple things we were taking for granted just weeks ago.
"Schools and communities are making sure kids, families and seniors have food," Reynolds said. "Churches are finding ways to worship by worshiping through technology on Sunday. Restaurants are innovating to develop new ways for delivery carry out and subscription service to ensure their workers still have a job to come to each day."
Dr. Caitlin Pedati, medical director at the Iowa Department of Public Health, also gave more guidance about who does and doesn't need to be tested for COVID-19.
She said not everyone needs to be tested right now because even if you have the virus, a positive test won't change treatment methods since there aren't any vaccines or medications for the virus.
"We want to make sure that we're doing a test because we're going to take some kind of action or do something different with that information," Pedati said. "That's true regardless of whether we're talking about COVID-19 or anything else. Particularly for our hospitalized patients, we want to test those people because it helps doctors understand how to care for these patients and what to expect as they care for them."
Dr. Pedati said that advice could change down the road if a treatment is developed or resources change.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends frequent hand washing, avoiding close contact and staying home if you are sick as main areas of focus for prevention and containment of COVID-19.