Most of the events scheduled for the 2020 Summer Iowa Games have been canceled due to COVID-19, Iowa Games organizers announced on Tuesday. “Due to the group gathering nature of this large-scale sports festival and social-distancing guidelines currently in place, the majority of the Summer Iowa Games have been cancelled for 2020,” Iowa Games said […]
Gov. Kim Reynolds
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Another 344 Iowans test positive for COVID-19, as the state prepares to reopen bars
The Iowa Department of Public Health reported at 10 a.m. on Monday that another 344 Iowans have tested positive for COVID-19, including five residents of Johnson County and eight residents of Linn County. The total number of confirmed cases in the state as of 10 a.m. was 17,557. IDPH also reported another seven deaths from […]
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Governor’s office omits more than 180 newly reported cases in its Sunday press release on COVID-19
Because the Iowa Department of Public Health’s COVID-19 information site was undergoing scheduled maintenance this weekend, the governor’s office released press releases on Saturday and Sunday with updates on the number of newly confirmed cases of the virus and COVID-19 deaths. The press release sent after 11:30 a.m. on Sunday stated, “Today, the state of […]
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Iowa reports 419 new COVID-19 cases and 26 more deaths the day after more restrictions are lifted
One day after Gov. Reynolds further relaxed Iowa’s remaining COVID-19 restrictions, the Iowa Department of Public Health reported another 419 Iowans have tested positive for the virus. The department also reported another 26 deaths due to the virus. That is the highest number of deaths reported on a single day so far. IDPH’s COVID-19 information […]
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As problems pile up, Gov. Reynolds brushes off questions about Test Iowa: ‘This is one tool in the toolbox’
For the second day in a row, Gov. Kim Reynolds assured Iowans that Test Iowa will now schedule a COVID-19 test for anyone who wants one. But as reporters explained to the governor at her press conference on Friday, that is not the case. Monica Madden of WHO-TV told Reynolds she had filled out a […]
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Gov. Reynolds opens up Test Iowa testing to all, criticizes reporters for focusing too much on testing
Gov. Kim Reynolds started her press conference on Thursday by boasting about the amount of COVID-19 testing being done in Iowa, and announcing the Test Iowa program will soon begin testing anyone who wants a test. Before the press conference was over, she was complaining that reporters are too “hung up on testing.” Reynolds also […]
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Iowa Utilities Board ends prohibition on disconnections
Some utility companies will be able to start disconnecting customers with unpaid bills next week, the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) decided on Wednesday. On March 27, IUB issued an order suspending all utility disconnections for the duration of Gov. Kim Reynolds’ proclamation of a public health emergency. The governor’s proclamation expires on Wednesday, May 27, […]
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Reynolds: Movie theaters, wedding venues and pools can reopen Friday, bars next week
Starting Friday, movie theaters, museums, zoos, aquariums, wedding reception venues and swimming pools can reopen statewide, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced at her press conference on Wednesday. Bars and “other establishments that serve alcohol and have been limited to carry-out and delivery” will be able to reopen next week. It’s the latest in a series of […]
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Reynolds responds to Trump’s plan to end the National Guard’s pandemic work, while Iowa’s updated COVID-19 site reports questionable data
The changes to the Iowa Department of Public Health’s COVID-19 information site announced on Monday are now complete. New graphs and charts have been added, and according to the department, case numbers are now being updated in real time, instead of once a day. Introducing the revamped site at her press conference on Tuesday, Gov. […]
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Iowa awarded millions of dollars in PPE contracts to a company that sells T-shirts and yard signs to Republican candidates
The state of Iowa awarded contracts worth millions of dollars for personal protective equipment (PPE) to a Des Moines company best known for providing campaign signs to Republican candidates, the Associated Press’s Ryan J. Foley reported on Saturday. “In three contracts worth $7.2 million, the state agreed to purchase 1 million isolation gowns and 100,000 […]
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Gov. Reynolds dismissed another warning from UI researchers before relaxing COVID-19 restrictions statewide
In a report to the Iowa Department of Public Health dated May 4, a team of researchers from the University of Iowa College of Public Health said there was “strong evidence” the COVID-19 restrictions in place prior to May 1 had “slowed the spread of the infection in Iowa,” but couldn’t show that they had […]
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Reynolds: ‘We never guaranteed that no one would get COVID-19’
As more COVID-19 restrictions were lifted across the state on Friday, the Iowa Department of Public Health reported another 18 Iowans have died from the virus. Over the last seven days, there have been a total of 93 COVID-19 deaths. That’s the highest numbers of deaths from the virus during any such period. Deaths, of […]
