Health Care
HIV/AIDS vaccine: Why don’t we have one after 37 years, when we have several for COVID-19 after a few months?
Smallpox has been eradicated from the face of the Earth following a highly effective, worldwide vaccination campaign. Paralytic poliomyelitis is no longer a problem in the U.S. because of development and use of effective vaccines against the poliovirus. In current times, millions of lives have been saved because of rapid deployment of effective vaccines against […]
CDC advisory panel signs off on Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for kids 12 to 15
WASHINGTON — A federal advisory panel is recommending that Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine be administered to adolescents between 12 and 15 years old, making it the first shot available to those under 16. The green light granted Wednesday afternoon by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine advisory panel is expected to be affirmed swiftly by […]
‘If we don’t do it now … this is never going to happen’: Senators advance mental health tax cut
There’s still no agreement between the House and Senate on taxes as both chambers advance mismatched proposals. The Senate held a meeting Monday about Senate File 1276, the tax “compromise” proposed last week by Gov. Kim Reynolds. The House has not agreed to the proposal. Sen. Dan Dawson, R-Council Bluffs, said Reynolds’ plan was “the […]
Iowa restaurants cited for slime, outdated food and unsanitary equipment
In recent weeks, state and county food inspectors have cited Iowa restaurants and grocery stores for hundreds of food-safety violations, including long-outdated food, unsanitary kitchen equipment and failure to employ a certified food protection manager. One Iowa restaurant had converted five-gallon chemical detergent buckets into food-storage containers they were using inside the kitchen’s walk-in cooler. […]
Grassley urges federal probe of drug middlemen
After years of accusations around the country, a bipartisan group in the U.S. Senate wants federal regulators to investigate whether drug middlemen and their parent companies are rigging the system to raise prices and pad their pockets. Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., last month filed legislation that would require the federal trade […]
Lawmakers hear heartbreaking stories of Black maternal deaths, pregnancy complications, racism
WASHINGTON — When U.S. Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri was pregnant with her first child, Zion, she saw a sign in her doctor’s office encouraging her to speak up about anything unusual she was feeling. She did so, telling her physician that she was having severe pains, but her concerns were swiftly dismissed. The doctor […]
Reynolds proposes mental-health overhaul and $400 million in tax cuts
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Wednesday that she has assembled a “compromise” budget plan that will phase out Iowa’s property tax-based mental health system and provide $400 million in tax cuts for Iowans. The proposed budget, she said, repeals the inheritance tax, expands child care and workforce housing, and creates what she called “sustainable funding […]
Sam Clovis, former GOP candidate, sues hospital for malpractice
Sam Clovis, a former GOP candidate for the U.S. Senate and a vocal advocate for tort reform, is suing an Iowa hospital and its affiliates for alleged medical malpractice. Clovis, 71, was a 2014 candidate in the Republican Senate primary, finishing second to Joni Ernst. In 2016, Clovis served as one of the national co-chairs […]
Dead bills are haunting the Capitol. Here’s one worth reviving.
The final days of the legislative session are like Halloween without the candy: The ghosts of dead bills start haunting the Capitol. In the past week or so, we’ve seen lawmakers try to resurrect a reduction in unemployment benefits, for example, that missed last month’s committee deadline. A ban on employers requiring COVID-19 vaccination for […]
Suspected hospice whistleblower hit with retaliation after a state inspection, judge finds
An Iowa hospice company retaliated against an alleged whistleblower suspected of reporting patient-care concerns to state regulators, a judge has ruled. According to state records, Judith Belcher had worked for Heartland Hospice Services of Davenport as a full-time medical social worker for four years before her termination in December 2020. At times, Belcher was providing […]
Iowa House votes to bar ‘vaccine passports,’ turns down effort to include health care facilities
The Iowa House approved legislation to outlaw so-called “vaccine passports” Wednesday after first voting down a proposal to eliminate an exclusion for health care facilities. “Fundamentally, this a liberty issue,” Rep. Steven Holt, R-Denison, who floor-managed the bill, said. The bill forbids the state or local governments from creating a document certifying a person has […]
Judge finds nursing home resident was illegally dumped in hospital E.R.
The agency that oversees nursing homes in Iowa has reversed a judge’s finding that an Iowa nursing home was unjustified in evicting a resident by dumping the man at a hospital and leaving him homeless during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Department of Inspections and Appeals found, however, the eviction was carried out without adequate notice. […]