(Radio Iowa) – Iowa faces a rising rate of COVID-19 hospitalizations as it moves into flu season and colder weather as recent daily hospitalization numbers have reached their highest levels since May. Thomas Tsai, a professor of Health Policy and Management at Harvard, expects the number of those seeking medical care to increase during the colder months, but he says the number of new cases and hospitalizations depends on the public.  “We actually have a lot of control over the course of the pandemic, depending on what our public health response is, our testing responses,” Tsai says, “and our behavior on masking and physical distancing.”

Tsai says the focus should be on suppressing the curve, not flattening the curve, which can be done through public health guidelines. COVID-19 hospitalizations in Iowa have been ticking upwards since early July, but rates have increased sharply in the last two weeks. While demand for medical care will increase during colder months, Tsai says hospitals are more ready for the virus now compared to last spring. “The hospitals have had the opportunity to prepare both the supplies needed to treat the patients, but also plan for contingencies in terms of how to create excess capacity,” he says.

Tsai says it’s extremely important this year for people to get a flu shot. He says public health precautions like social distancing and wearing masks play a big role in lowering case counts and hospitalizations.

(reporting by Natalie Krebs, Iowa Public Radio)