COVID-19 hospitalizations in Iowa climbed to 912 on Friday with 188 people in intensive care and 67 people on ventilators. Washington County Public Health Director Danielle Pettit-Majewski says the actions people take now will impact the case numbers in the coming weeks, “What we decided to do in the next few weeks will absolutely determine the stress on our hospital system and what we’re looking at for the winter to come.”

She encourages people to avoid large gatherings, even if it means scaling down holiday traditions. She says every day people should take steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19, “Stay six feet apart. Wear a mask. Wash your hands. Stay home if you’re sick. I mean these are the things we’ve been talking about since March.”

As of Friday, Washington County had 820 confirmed cases, 12 deaths, and 543 people have recovered. Of the cases in Washington County, nearly 100 have been confirmed since the start of the month.