The Iowa Department of Public Health has been misreporting COVID-19 test data for months due to a problem in its data management system. The error in the system has caused thousands of positive test results to be incorrectly backdated and reported as happening months earlier, according to a review of data published by IDPH. This […]
Gov. Kim Reynolds
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President Trump said he approved federal disaster aid for Iowa
Update: During her Monday afternoon news conference, Gov. Reynolds said President Trump will visit Iowa on Tuesday. President Trump said on Monday morning he’d approved a federal major disaster declaration for Iowa counties affected by the derecho that struck the state one week ago. “I’ve just approved an emergency declaration for Iowa who had an […]
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Gov. Reynolds will apply for federal disaster assistance on Monday
Gov. Kim Reynolds will be submitting an application to the federal government on Monday, asking President Trump to issue a major disaster declaration for storm-damaged areas in Iowa. Reynolds made the announcement during a press conference in Cedar Rapids, one of the cities hit hardest by Monday’s derecho. “The destruction was indescribable,” Reynolds said on […]
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‘Every area of our city has seen destruction’: Local and state leaders call on Gov. Reynolds to deploy National Guard to Cedar Rapids to help with storm damage
Every area of Cedar Rapids has seen destruction from the derecho that swept through Iowa on Monday, City Manager Jeff Pomeranz said. The destruction is more extensive than what the city experienced in the floods of 2008 and 2016, he added. “This is a greater impact than we’ve ever seen in this community,” Pomeranz said […]
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Gov. Reynolds: School district ‘did exactly what they needed to do’ by moving first-grade class online after positive COVID-19 test
Gov. Kim Reynolds had planned to have the superintendent of the Indianola Community School District speak at her press conference on Tuesday, so he could explain what the district has done since its Irving Elementary School confirmed a case of COVID-19 four days after starting classes, but postponed the superintendent’s appearance to have more time […]
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Iowa has the highest number of COVID-19 cases per capita in the Midwest
Five months after the first cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in the state, Iowa has the highest number of cases per capita of any Midwestern state, according to data compiled by the CDC. Ohio, where the first cases of the virus were confirmed one day after Iowa’s first cases, has the lowest number per capita […]
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COVID-19: School districts push back against Gov. Reynolds’ reopening plans; three more deaths reported in Johnson County
Saturday, Aug. 8 marks five months since the first cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Iowa, and on Friday Gov. Kim Reynolds’ office published an open letter from the governor about the pandemic, in which she said “we’re all working toward the same goal.” “Now is not the time to let our guard down,” Reynolds […]
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Cedar Rapids nursing home has a second outbreak of COVID-19, as 588 more Iowans test positive
Cottage Grove Place in Cedar Rapids has been added to the Iowa Department of Public Health list of long-term care facilities with COVID-19 outbreaks. According to IDPH, six people at Cottage Grove have tested positive for the virus, one of whom is considered recovered. IDPH does not distinguish between residents and staff when reporting the […]
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Johnson County Board of Supervisors approves a mask mandate
The Johnson County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously at its meeting on Thursday to approve a Board of Health ordinance requiring the use of face coverings in public spaces to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. With certain limited exceptions, the ordinance requires anyone inside a building open to the public to wear a face […]
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State denies Iowa City school district’s request to start all classes online; Iowa’s COVID-19 death toll surpasses 900
On Thursday, the Iowa Department of Education (DOE) rejected a request from the Iowa City Community School District to allow its schools to start the new school year with two weeks of all online instruction. In its application, ICCSD said it was concerned about the health and safety of students and staff if it began […]
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Iowa is no longer the only state to disenfranchise all people convicted of felonies
Gov. Kim Reynolds signed an executive order that automatically restores the voting rights of almost all Iowans convicted of a felony, as well as their right to hold public office. The bill excludes people convicted of murder and manslaughter, although they can still individually apply to the governor for the restoration of their rights. “Iowa […]
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Reynolds warns schools not to switch to all online classes without permission, criticizes COVID-19 ‘scare tactics’ used by media
“I want to be very clear,” Gov. Kim Reynolds near the beginning of her press conference on Tuesday. “Schools that choose not to return to school for at least 50 percent in-person instruction are not defying me, they’re defying the law.” The governor said that if a school moved to all online instruction without first […]
