Reinbeck
Iowa's dental care crisis 'unacceptable'
IOWA CITY — University of Iowa Health Care has agreed to pay $1.3 million to the family of a 41-year-old Benton County woman who died in the hospital following a heart attack in 2022, according to a settlement approved by the Iowa Board of Appeals. “The parties recognized the risks and costs to both sides of further litigation and a settlement was reached,” according to Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Peterzalek — referencing the protracted lawsuit filed more than two years ago in July 2024, which came two years after Stephanie Earle, 41, went to the ER on July 1, 2022. About 8 p.m. that day, Earle was rushed by ambulance to Virginia Gay Hospital in Vinton — as she had been struggling to breathe — and became unresponsive on the way, according to the lawsuit. “She was noted to be in pulseless ventricular tachycardia, was defibrillated several times en route to Virginia Gay Hospital and CPR was in progress upon arrival,” the lawsuit reported. “Stephanie required intubation at Virginia Gay Hospital, however — following CPR and defibrillation — Stephanie was awake, moving her head, and attempting to speak while at Virginia Gay Hospital.” She had been a smoker, had high
Four hospitals in southern and southwest Iowa are among eight facilities selected for opioid prevention funding through a $775,550 grant announced by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird. Originally published by Iowa Pulse . For more verified Iowa news and real-time updates, follow Iowa Pulse.
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) - Cedar Rapids Police were called Monday morning to investigate a suspicious item at Mercy Medical Center. A Mercy spokesperson tells KCRG that a bag was found unattended in Lundy Pavilion, the hospital’s entrance off of Eighth Avenue. CRPD’s bomb squad was called to investigate...
Iowa Gov.-elect Rob Sand says he'll begin the process of ending Iowa's decade-old Medicaid privatization system on his first day in office, but the transition won't happen overnight. Why it matters: The end of privatized Medicaid would be one of the most dramatic changes to Iowa's health care systems in 10 years, but Sand has criticized the program, saying it prioritizes profits over patients. Driving the news: Sand shared his early priorities with reporters during his first press conference as governor-elect in the Capitol rotunda Monday. "This is not a thing that we can do overnight. But my intention is that that process begins on day one," Sand said. Catch up quick: Former Republican Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad transferred management of Iowa's Medicaid program from the state to private insurance companies in 2016, arguing the move would improve care and save taxpayers money. The program launched April 1, 2016, transferring coverage for around 94% of Medicaid members to three privately managed care organizations. A 2021 report from Sand's state auditor's office found an 891% increase in administrative law judges overturning denials of Medicaid services after privatization. The other side: State officials disputed the findings, saying changes to the appeals process
DES MOINES — Changes to social services, including Medicaid and food and nutrition programs like SNAP, have Iowans who rely on those services on edge. In some cases, several programs work together to help parents provide for their families. Sara Shiltz, a convenience store assistant manager and a mother...
DUBUQUE COUNTY, Iowa (KCRG) - For Kay Vifian, questions about Iowa’s high cancer diagnosis rate are personal. Her husband was diagnosed with prostate cancer more than a year ago. The Dubuque County resident says he is doing well, but she wants more research and discussion about what could be...
The Environmental Protection Agency has removed several rivers and streams from the Iowa Natural Resources Department's list of impaired waterways , despite being contaminated with dangerous levels of nitrates. An environmental coalition sued the EPA over the move but the agency has doubled down on its decision. Citing high nitrate levels caused largely by farm runoff, the advocacy group Food and Water Watch and the Iowa Environmental Council took the EPA to court over its failure to protect segments of the Cedar, Des Moines, Iowa and South Skunk rivers, meaning they will not be prioritized for developing cleanup plans. Dani Replogle, staff attorney for Food and Water Watch, said the EPA offered a weak rationale for keeping these rivers off the list. "For example, by saying that we only have 362 days of data, and if we had 365 – a full year's worth of data – then maybe the percentage of exceedance days would be under the limit," Replogle pointed out. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources sends nitrate level information to the EPA, which the agency uses to decide whether to include waterways on the impaired list. Despite historical and repeated incidents of dangerous nitrate levels, the agency
A network of specialty clinics in northern Iowa closed suddenly Oct. 30 after it was no longer able to pay its employees. Court documents indicate Cedar Valley Medical Specialists, an independent and locally owned network of health providers across 26 locations in northeast Iowa, was over $15 million in debt with Linn County-based Farmers State Bank. In early October, Cedar Valley Medical Specialists’ legal team alleged the bank took control of the company’s accounts and would not release any funds. As a result, Cedar Valley Medical Specialists could not make payroll. Cedar Valley Medical Specialists’ legal team requested a temporary injunction so the business could access its funds, but a judge denied the request Oct. 27. The judge concluded Cedar Valley Medical Specialists was aware its assets could be blocked but didn’t take enough action to prevent it. Farmers State Bank had filed a petition to access Cedar Valley Medical Specialists’ collateral in May, alleging the company had not made sufficient payments toward their debt. The bank also requested a third-party receivership be established to manage the company’s finances going forward. Instead, the two parties agreed to appoint a chief restructuring officer to develop a financial management plan. Court filings
The University is asking for Regents’ permission to expand cancer-focused research space in the College of Pharmacy.
MercyOne Air Med will celebrate the 40th anniversary of service to its patients across Iowa on Nov. 10 at 1 p.m., with events in Des Moines, Clinton and Mason City. The public is invited to join the festivities, tour the helicopters and meet the people behind the life-saving care that has been MercyOne Air Med’s hallmark for the last 40 years.
Iowa is getting another major investment in rural health care. Here's how the $216 million could improve medical services for communities across the state.
Mahaska Health team members Caleb Robinson, RN, and Audrianna Wilke, BSN, RN, Director of Inpatient Services, were recognized at the Iowa Hospital Association (IHA) Annual Meeting in Des Moines in October at the Community Choice Convention Center. The IHA Hospital Hero Award recognizes hospital employees who go above and beyond...
MASON CITY, Iowa — MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center is the first in the region to offer a robotic-assisted platform for minimally invasive lung biopsies, enabling doctors to obtain tissue samples more easily for early detection and staging of lung cancer. Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer...
MercyOne Air Med is celebrating its 40th anniversary of service to patients across Iowa on Nov. 10 at 1 p.m., with events in Des Moines, Clinton and Mason City. The public can tour the helicopters and meet the people behind MercyOne Air Med’s lifesaving care over the last four decades. The Clinton event will be […]
BLACK HAWK COUNTY, Iowa (KWWL) - As the fallout from the Cedar Valley Medical Specialists financial situation continues to unfold, numerous medical care clinics once associated with the embattled medical group have announced plans to go independent. In statements posted onto their respective Facebook pages, officials from the Cedar Valley...
St. Luke's Dr. Alejandro Bribriesco talks risk factors, screening, diagnosis and treatment options.
Cedar Valley Medical Specialists, including the location in Waverly in the mall between Hy-Vee and Miller True Value, have ceased all operations, according to KWWL. The medical group has experienced money issues that led to them being forced to stop operations. They borrowed more than $15 million from Farmers State Bank over several years but have defaulted on those loans. Lawyers for CVMS had sought to unfreeze financial assets and bank accounts currently blocked by Farmers State Bank but that was denied by a judge. Employees were supposed to be paid on Friday but that allegedly did not happen and it is unclear if they will be paid in the future. In the meantime they are eligible to apply for unemployment insurance compensation from Iowa Workforce Development. Employees also no longer have health insurance coverage through the company. The individual doctors and clinics may continue to operate but will need to do so on their own, independently.
An estimated 573 Medicare beneficiaries in Hardin County have been notified that their current Medicare Advantage or prescription drug plan is being canceled or discontinued for 2027. The changes come as Medicare’s annual open enrollment period runs through Dec. 7. Statewide, more than 87,000 Iowa Medicare beneficiaries have received notices...
Second District congressional candidate Lindsay James made a campaign stop in Mason City last night, as her Republican opponent Joe Mitchell appeared at a Make America Healthy Again rally in a Des Moines suburb. James, a Democrat from Dubuque, said the next congress will be taking important votes on federal...
