Grundy County affected by region 6 order

AREA - Governor Kim Reynolds announced at her 11 a.m. press conference on Thursday, April 16, 2020, that Region 6 (which includes Grundy and Black Hawk Counties) in Iowa has been elevated to a Level 10 in terms of COVID-19 danger. This is the highest threshold on the chart at which additional methods will be utilized to mitigate the effects of the hyper-communicable coronavirus.

Effective at 11:59 p.m., April 16, 2020; gatherings in all Region 6 counties will cease through April 30. This, indicated by the Governor, is for “social, community and recreational, leisure or sporting activities”. The order is for Iowans living in counties in Region 6 to gather only with members of their immediate household. Reynolds continued to clarify that there will be limited exceptions for “weddings, funerals, and other religious gatherings, which will continue to be restricted to 10 individuals or less.”

Residents are also expected to continue keeping six feet of distance between themselves when outside of their homes. Businesses are not subject to any further restrictions but are asked to further analyze the capability of work to be done from home and practice social distancing between employees and customers wherever possible.

In her proclamation, Gov. Reynolds noted "all peace officers of the state are hereby called upon to assist in the enforcement of the provisions of this Proclamation."

Iowa's Regional Medical Coordination Centers divides Iowa into six regions, which the governor and the Iowa Department of Public Health have used to monitor specific data about the effect of the coronavirus in different parts of the state.

The IDPH monitors these regions on a 12-point scale, accumulating points based on the percentage of the population over the age of 65, the percent of identified cases requiring hospitalization, the rate of identified cases per 100,000 population in the past 14 days, and the number of outbreaks at long-term care facilities. When regions reach a sum of at least 10 points, they are subject to further restrictions and the Governor may issue a statewide shelter-in-place order.

Regions with a sum of 0-3 are asked to follow preparation and awareness guidelines for the coronavirus. Regions with a point total from 4-9 are subject to social distancing and mitigation strategies; all other regions of Iowa currently fall under this designation. A further explanation of this system is available at the IDPH website.