Iowa had the least COVID-19 restrictions but the best recovery from the pandemic, a WalletHub study found. | File photo
Iowa had the least COVID-19 restrictions but the best recovery from the pandemic, a WalletHub study found. | File photo
Iowa had the fewest COVID-19 restrictions of any state and also experienced the fastest recovery from the pandemic, a new study found.
The financial website WalletHub ranked Iowa number one in the nation for overall quickest recovery from COVID-19, followed by Nebraska, Alaska, South Dakota and New Hampshire in its report released June 8.
The study ranked states based on three categories: COVID health, leisure and travel, and economy and labor market.
The health ranking considered data on COVID-19 hospitalization, death and vaccination rates, as well as health care staff shortages.
Economic factors in the rankings included unemployment rates, active real estate listings and consumer spending.
The study also compared data on average daily restaurant visits and the number of people visiting theme parks, museums, libraries and movie theatres.
Iowa’s top-ranking follows harsh criticism of Gov. Kim Reynolds in recent months for relaxing the state’s mask mandate and other restrictions.
“Tonight’s proclamation from Governor Reynolds is short-sighted, ill-conceived, and dangerous as it puts our community and most vulnerable at risk,” Rep. Cindy Axne (D-IA) said on Twitter at the time.
Several cities in Iowa, including Des Moines, kept local restrictions despite the governor’s rolling back of state restrictions, according to The Washington Post.
“The governor’s decision is confusing and can’t be rationalized with the number of positive cases we continue to see across the state and here in Polk County,” Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie said in a press release in February.
The mask mandate for Des Moines remained in place until May 14.
In contrast to Iowa, states such as New York and Delaware saw more mixed results in their health and economic rankings despite having more extensive restrictions.
New York ranked 35th in COVID-19 recovery despite its ranking as one of the states with the most restrictions in a previous WalletHub study. New York ranked highly in COVID health, at 9th overall, though the state still lagged behind Iowa and other states with fewer restrictions.
Delaware ranked 49th in terms of the fewest restrictions, and it ranked 45th in recovery speed.
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