Governor Reynolds Signs Child Care Assistance Bill Into Law
(Undated) — Child care workers in Iowa can now get help paying for child care for their own children. Governor Kim Reynolds signed House File 2514 into law Thursday at a child care facility in Slater. Starting July 1, child care employees who work at least 32 hours a week qualify for child care assistance, regardless of income.
Rain Last Week Eases Iowa Drought Conditions
(Undated) — Rain that fell across the state last week is helping ease drought conditions, especially in southern and southeast Iowa. The new National Drought Monitor map shows no more severe drought in southeast Iowa, and moderate drought’s has been reduced across all of southern Iowa. There are still areas of severe and moderate drought in northwest Iowa. About 47-percent of Iowa is drought-free.
Casey’s General Store Added to S&P 500
(Ankeny, IA) — Ankeny-based Casey’s General Store has joined the S&P 500. The index tracks the 500 largest publicly-traded companies in the United States. Casey’s now operates more than 2,900 stores in 19 states.
Iowa Hospital Accused Of Allowing Warrantless ICE Access To Patient Records
(Cedar Rapids, IA) — An immigrant advocacy group is accusing an Eastern Iowa hospital of letting ICE agents access patient records without a warrant. The group Escucha Mi Voz says they’ve gained access to what they say is internal policy at UnityPoint Health-St. Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids that allows ICE to view patient records without a court order. The hospital says the document circulating online isn’t official policy, and doesn’t reflect their practice of cooperating with law enforcement while protecting patient confidentiality. The immigrant group says those policies may prevent people from seeking healthcare. The hospital says misinformation about its privacy policies can do the same.
New Data: Iowans Show Little Interest in Carpooling
(Undated) — New data show Iowans have little in interest in carpooling. An analysis of data from Google Keyword Planner collected last month in all 50 states looked at searches for carpooling and related keywords, then ranked each state based on the number of searches per 100 thousand residents. Iowa ranked in the bottom ten, 40th on the list overall, with just over 15 searches for carpooling per 100 thousand residents.
