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Hinterland announces huge headliners for a smaller, COVID-conscious festival

The same day Bonnaroo — one of the biggest outdoor music festivals in the country, set in Tennessee — announced the Avett Brothers would be headlining their Concerts on the Farm series this summer, Iowa’s own farm-based fest declared they’d snagged the powerhouse folk-rock group as well. The Avett Brothers, Leon Bridges, Tyler Childers, Old […]

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All Iowans will become eligible for COVID-19 vaccination on April 5, Reynolds says

All adults in Iowa will be eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccination starting on Monday, April 5, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced at her news conference on Wednesday. The new eligibility expansion will be contingent on the vaccine supply increasing. According to Reynolds, Biden administration officials assure the nation’s governors vaccine supplies will soon begin to […]

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Iowa Department of Public Health signed a $1.58 million deal with GOP-connected contact tracing company

With no public announcement, the Iowa Department of Public Health approved in January a contract extension for a company with ties to the Iowa Republican Party that the department hired in November to provide COVID-19 contact tracing assistance, Ryan Foley of the Associated Press reported on Friday. The three-month extension will pay MCI $1.58 million. […]

Posted inCOVID-19

Linn County Public Health will begin allocating vaccine to residents with underlying medical conditions starting next week

Linn County Public Health has made “significant changes” to vaccine allocation and will begin vaccinating residents with underlying medical conditions next week, the department announced on Sunday. The Iowa Department of Health announced last Thursday that adults under 65 who have a condition the CDC recognizes as putting them at higher risk of developing severe […]

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‘Extremely frustrating’: Linn County will not be receiving additional COVID-19 vaccines despite IDPH expanding eligibility

Linn County will not be receiving additional COVID-19 vaccines from the state despite the Iowa Department of Public Health expanding the number of individuals who will become eligible to be vaccinated. The Iowa Department of Health announced on Thursday that adults under 65 who have a condition the CDC recognizes as putting them at higher […]

Posted inCOVID-19

Cedar Rapids high schools will hold in-person graduation ceremonies this spring

Students graduating from the Cedar Rapids Community School District (CRCSD) will have an in-person graduation ceremony, the district said in an email to families on Friday. Ceremonies for Jefferson, Kennedy and Washington high schools will be held in the Alliant Energy PowerHouse, formerly known as the U.S. Cellular Center. The ceremony for Metro High School […]

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‘This Mental Health Access Center will be a game-changer’: After years of collaboration, Linn County’s center prepares to assist first patients

While it would have been easy to put the opening of the Linn County Mental Health Access Center on hold, director Erin Foster said the challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic only made it more critical for the center to open. “We saw that we cannot stop this from moving forward,” Foster, who has been […]

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Left to ‘completely rebuild’ their team after COVID cuts, UI women swimmers are taking the university to task over Title IX

There were “mixed emotions” when University of Iowa Athletic Director Gary Barta met with the women’s swimming and diving team on Feb. 15 to let them know their program, which the university had cut on Aug. 21, would be fully reinstated. While there was excitement and optimism over the news, there was also frustration over […]

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UI now planning in-person commencement ceremonies after Republican lawmaker introduces bill that would mandate them

The University of Iowa has reversed its decision to hold only virtual commencement ceremonies for its spring 2021 graduates in an attempt to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19, and will hold in-person ceremonies. UI announced on Feb. 3 it would be holding a virtual ceremony. In its statement, the university acknowledged “how much [in-person] […]

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