Gov. Kim Reynolds is lifting Iowa’s ban on nonessential surgeries and allowing farmers' markets to open again starting Monday as she prepares to make further announcements about easing restrictions on businesses imposed to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Representatives from several markets, including the Des Moines Farmers' Market, are reviewing the requirements for opening and considering their options.

Many Iowa businesses are ordered closed through April 30. Reynolds, a Republican, said at a news conference Friday that she will lay out plans Monday to begin reopening businesses in certain areas of the state.

"It will be done in a responsible and safe manner," Reynolds said, "but we are at a place where it’s time to start having that discussion."

Her comments about lifting restrictions came as Iowa recorded its highest single day of positive COVID-19 tests and deaths due to the virus. On Friday, the Iowa Department of Public Health reported 11 additional deaths due to COVID-19 for a total of 107 deaths statewide. Another 521 people also tested positive on Friday, bringing the number of positive tests statewide to 4,445.

Iowa Department of Public Health Deputy Director Sarah Reisetter said Friday that Iowa is likely to see a peak of infections "in the next two to three weeks" as testing improves. Reisetter made a nearly identical claim on March 29, nearly four weeks ago.

More:The latest in coronavirus in Iowa

"We fully anticipate that we’re going to see a peak here in the next two to three weeks as we really start to do some of the surveillance testing that we’ve been doing, when 'Test Iowa' sites start to open up and we’re testing more Iowans than we ever have before," Reisetter said Friday.

Hospitals must meet requirements to perform elective surgeries

Iowa medical officials said Friday that they don't expect a rush of new surgeries when the restrictions lift Monday. Instead, they said they hope hospitals and medical facilities will act cautiously to resume procedures while preserving personal protective equipment and bed space for COVID-19 patients.

"That ban has been lifted but that shouldn’t be seen as a green light to rush back to normal operating procedures as fast as you can," said Dr. Brian Privett, a Cedar Rapids ophthalmologist and president of the Iowa Medical Society.

Nonessential surgical and dental procedures in the state have been banned since Reynolds issued a proclamation on March 26. Friday's order does not lift the prohibition on dental procedures.

The governor issued the March order, in part, to preserve personal protective equipment like masks and gloves for other health care workers amid a national shortage.

Reynolds said Friday that the state is still experiencing a shortage of protective equipment. Hospitals and medical facilities may only begin performing nonessential surgeries again if they meet certain requirements, according to Reynolds' proclamation on Friday.

Facilities must have adequate inventories of personal protective equipment and access to a supply chain to replenish that equipment without relying on government stockpiles. They must also have a plan in place to preserve protective equipment and must test surgery patients for COVID-19 before performing the procedure.

Hospitals and medical providers must also continue treating COVID-19 patients and set aside at least 30% of intensive care unit beds and 30% of medical/surgical beds for COVID-19 patients, the proclamation states.

Privett said he's still concerned about the lack of availability of personal protective equipment in the state and the risk to health care workers' safety that the shortage poses. He said officials need to keep that concern in mind when thinking about lifting restrictions.

"Part of my concern with opening up while we’re still heading into our peak is, are we really keeping the health care workers in mind with some of these decisions, or are other factors coming into play?" he said.

University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics CEO Dr. Suresh Gunasekaran said Friday that the hospital system has prepared to safely begin performing nonessential surgeries again and will do so sometime next week.

Gunasekaran said UIHC delayed between two-thirds and three-quarters of all the surgeries on its schedule as a result of the restriction. Those procedures become more urgent the longer they are delayed, he said, so hospitals need to find a way to care for those patients while maintaining capacity in case of a surge in COVID-19 cases.

"The new normal is that for a significant period of time I think we’re going to have COVID in our community, but we’re also going to have to take care of other medical conditions right alongside of it," he said.

Farmers' markets considering whether to reopen

Reynolds on Friday also announced that farmers' markets could begin operating again starting Monday in a limited capacity.

Farmers' markets will only be able to allow vendors who sell farm products or food. The sale of other goods, as well as musical performances, children's activities and other forms of entertainment are prohibited. Farmers' market organizers must also eliminate any seating areas, ensure increased hygiene is practiced, and keep at least six feet of space between all people and booths to follow social distancing guidelines.

Reynolds said the state would have more information Monday on the first phase of re-opening Iowa businesses that she has ordered closed. While Friday's announcements lift restrictions on surgeries and farmers' markets statewide, the steps Reynolds said she will take on Monday will be more targeted to certain areas of the state.

Some markets haven't yet decided how they'll proceed.

“The Downtown Farmers’ Market is evaluating different avenues for activating the market,” said Kelly Foss, director of the Downtown Farmers’ Market. “This includes considering ways the market can connect vendors and buyers while maintaining health and safety guidelines. We will have more to announce soon.”

Other markets are also deciding what their summer will look like. The Uptown Ankeny Farmers' Market said in a Facebook message that its committee is meeting next week to review the governor's guidelines on the markets. The market will also follow City of Ankeny policy.

The Beaverdale farmers' market knows its decision. Marketing manager Jane Gasperi said the market will start on June 2.

Disagreement over reopening businesses

Democratic and Republican lawmakers are at odds about Reynolds' plan to begin lifting restrictions.

House Minority Leader Todd Prichard, D-Charles City, said Reynolds must release the data and model she is using to prove it is safe to reopen businesses.

"Instead of sending mixed signals, the governor needs to provide clear leadership to bring Iowa out of this pandemic safely. The governor didn’t provide the information necessary today to demonstrate to Iowans that it is safe to loosen restrictions that prevent the spread of the coronavirus," Prichard said in a statement Friday.

Meanwhile, nine Republican members of the Iowa Legislature released a letter Friday supporting Reynolds' efforts to lift restrictions on businesses. Some of those lawmakers began calling last weekend for Reynolds to loosen restrictions.

"We support the governor’s efforts to open less impacted areas of our state as soon as possible. We ask for guidelines that allow businesses to open quickly, with recommendations for mitigation measures that will encourage safe practices," the Republicans wrote.

Reynolds said Friday that expanded coronavirus testing will allow the state to identify areas that are at greater risk for the virus and find other areas that may be able to reopen because the threat is not so severe.

"It really will allow us to target our responses and identify where some of the clusters and the hot spots are," she said.

The state announced Friday that it had performed 2,711 tests, a new single-day high. And on Saturday, Des Moines is set to offer the first drive-through testing through the new 'Test Iowa' initiative.

Reynolds said Thursday that a tip from actor Ashton Kutcher led her to the Utah-based companies she hired to run the $26 million coronavirus testing program.

"He asked if I was familiar with what was happening with 'Test Utah,' and how it looks very promising, and it looked like other states should potentially take a look at that," Reynolds said Thursday.

The Iowa contract, to be paid with federal money, was not open to bids from other companies."When the federal government is playing Hunger Games with the states during a pandemic, we have to get creative. My family is in Iowa. My friends are in Iowa. I am and will always be an Iowan. My first order of duty is to protect my family," Kutcher said in a statement Thursday.

​​​​​​​Reporters Sarah Kay LeBlanc and Sierra Porter contributed to this report.

Stephen Gruber-Miller covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. Reach him at sgrubermil@registermedia.com or 515-284-8169.

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