(Radio Iowa) – Demand for the COVID-19 vaccine in Iowa is falling, although just 45-percent of the state’s population has been fully vaccinated. The numbers range from just over a quarter of all residents in Davis County to more than half of all residents in Johnson County. Ross McKinney, with the Association of American Medical Colleges, says the number needed for herd immunity will shift as the virus continues to circulate and mutate.

“As long as it keeps mutating, it’s going to keep changing what that magic number would be,” McKinney says. “And it’s always going to be getting worse, because the more contagious virus is going to be the one that spreads.” McKinney says unvaccinated people remain at risk for getting seriously ill or dying from the virus, especially with the new “delta variant” circulating.

“The delta variant is much more contagious,” he says. “It’s 50% more contagious than the variants that were there before and it’s about 50% more likely to put you into the hospital.” State health officials say 64-percent of adult Iowans have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. McKinney says it’s unlikely Iowa will reach President Joe Biden’s goal of 70-percent by the Fourth of July, though more than a dozen other states have already reached that goal.

(By Natalie Krebs, Iowa Public Radio)