DES MOINES, Iowa - Governor Kim Reynolds office says more information will be released Wednesday about an error on the state's COVID-19 website that lowered the number of new cases reported.
Up to thousands of positive cases were backdated by months because of an error in the state system.
Results of people who recently tested positive were backdated to when they previously tested negative, as far back as March, resulting in current virus rates being understated.
The problem has been reported as schools are using the state's data to make decisions about bringing kids back for in-person classes.
The state is requiring schools to open with at least 50 percent of classes in person unless the county the school is in reaches a 15 percent positivity rate for COVID-19 over 14 days.
The skewed numbers on the Iowa COVID-19 website is complicating the decisions of school districts
A number of them have objected to the 50 percent requirement and asked for a waiver to start classes completely online, or are choosing to defy the order.
The Des Moines district is now in the process of seeking a waiver while similar requests from several other districts have been denied.