ER visits average more than 2 hours in Iowa

Iowa sits in the middle of the pack for time spent in an emergency room — averaging a little over two hours, according to research by IT service automation company SysAid.

State of play: Des Moines-area hospitals have recently struggled with record-long waits, especially during the second half of 2021 when the Omicron surge was compounded by staffing shortages.

• Local hospitals said wait times could reach up to 10+ hours depending on the day.

Yes, but: There's hope that increases in staff pay and a decline in COVID patients could help wait times settle down.

Of note: SysAid studied Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services data from January 2020 to March 2021.

View our interactive map.