Government + Politics
Almost two-thirds of Iowa’s COVID-19 cases not hospitalized
Iowa reported 21 additional positive cases of COVID-19 Wednesday morning, for a total of 145 positive cases. The Iowa Department of Public Health says that of the 107 cases now being tracked, 71 have never — at least yet — been hospitalized; 23 are currently hospitalized; 12 have been discharged from the hospital and are […]
Census Bureau: Iowans’ response rate nears 30%
Iowa’s response rate to the U.S. Census is nearing 30%, ahead of the national average. But the COVID-19 outbreak could change how some data is collected. Iowa’s overall response rate was 29.5% as of March 23. That is ahead of the national average of 23.6%. The final 2010 response rate for Iowa was 73%. Census […]
Reynolds rejects calls for a stay-at-home order, citing Iowa infection data
Gov. Kim Reynolds pushed back Tuesday against suggestions from Iowa mayors that she issue a shelter-in-place order for Iowa. Earlier this week, Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie urged Reynolds to issue a statewide order keeping Iowans in their homes to minimize the spread of COVID-19. Officials in Cedar Rapids have said Iowans are not doing […]
Polk County to shelter COVID-positive homeless at fairgrounds
Polk County and partners are setting up a shelter at the Oman Family Youth Inn at the Iowa State Fairgrounds for homeless people who test positive for COVID-19. “When we are sick, we want to be comforted in a place where you feel safe and can get well. For people experiencing homeless, they do not […]
Iowa DOT bans appointments except for essential services
The Iowa Department of Transportation will make license appointments through May 1 only for people involved in “essential services.” The move was a further tightening of driver’s license processing and other services during the COVID-19 outbreak. Call ahead for an appointment. Visitors will be screened before allowing to enter. Examples of “essential services” are commercial […]
Des Moines closes playgrounds in parks
Des Moines parks are still open, but the playground equipment is off limits until the COVID-19 outbreak wanes, city officials announced. The city parks department made the announcement on its Facebook page, noting that the new coronavirus can live on metal and other hard surfaces for an undetermined time. Many of the playgrounds will be […]
Iowa ‘not quite’ in need of a stay-at-home order
Iowa officials said Monday that an analysis of the latest data on the spread of COVID-19 indicates the state is “not quite” at the point where a stay-at-home order is needed. At a press conference Monday, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds and public health officials said they’re relying on hospitalization data to indicate if, and when, […]
Absentee voting period extended for mail-in ballots
Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate is encouraging Iowans to vote by mail for the June primary and he has extended the absentee voting period to 40 days for mail-in votes. The action is in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It will allow voters more time to send in their ballots and provide county auditors […]
More COVID-19 testing should not change our behavior. But it probably would.
What would you do if you received a positive diagnosis of coronavirus? This is the essential question behind the public policy argument over who should be tested for COVID-19. There are loud and persistent voices in the news media, on social media and in elected office insisting that we can’t possibly respond appropriately to this […]
Reynolds: Child care is vital to keep essential workers on the job
Gov. Kim Reynolds on Sunday defended her decision not to close child-care centers, even as schools have closed. She called on schools, community organizations and churches to make their spaces available for emergency child care centers for essential workers. Reynolds also announced Sunday that she has signed another emergency proclamation that closes more businesses and […]
Iowa adds 22 positive COVID-19 tests; state total hits 90
Iowa has 22 new positive tests of residents with COVID-19, for a total of 90 confirmed cases reported to Iowa Department of Public Health, the agency announced Sunday. The department said in a news release there had been 1,215 negative tests conducted at the state hygienic lab as of midday Sunday. Gov. Kim Reynolds will […]
Des Moines mayor urges residents to stay home, suspends parking meter fees
Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie urged residents Saturday to voluntarily stay home during the COVID-19 outbreak. He added that they should work to stay healthy. That means for at least two weeks, residents should limit their time out of the house to getting groceries, going to the doctor and other essential activities such as outdoor […]