(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds is cancelling the contract for Microsoft to build a website for Iowans to schedule a Covid shot.

State public health officials say there are as many as 700 different providers giving vaccinations in Iowa that Microsoft would have had to merge into one website.

In addition to the 99 county public health departments in Iowa, pharmacies, hospitals and health clinics have been giving Covid shots. The state is scheduled to receive nearly 62-thousand first doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines next week, a 24 percent increase from this week’s allotment. State officials are encouraging providers to quickly schedule appointments based on that higher allocation.

Reynolds says there is an effort to train the operators who answer calls to 2-1-1.

In the meantime, Iowans eligible for vaccinations are encouraged to call their local Area Agency on Aging for assistance if they’re having trouble navigating online scheduling systems.

State officials are also encouraging county public health departments and pharmacies to schedule more vaccinations on weekends, when it may be more convenient for people who cannot get to a vaccination site during the week.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office Wednesday (today) said there were two arrests over the past week and one injury accident. Taken into custody just before 5-a.m. Saturday during a traffic stop on I-29, was 58-year old Randolph Troy Smith, of Vero Beach, FL.  Smith was arrested for OWI/1st offense, with bond set at $1,000. And, on Feb. 11th, 38-year old Dustin Lee Harriman, of Council Bluffs, was arrested at the Pottawattamie County Jail, on a Mills County warrant for two counts of Probation Violation. Harriman was being held on a $10,000 bond.

Thursday afternoon (Feb. 11), vehicles driven by 57-year old James Cooper, of Farragut, and 47-year old George Sievers, of Malvern, were westbound on Highway 34 at the intersection with 188th St., when Cooper became distracted by his phone going off. He took his eyes off the road just long enough to check the phone. When he looked up, he saw red lights and was unable to stop before his 2017 Chrysler hit the rear of Sievers’ 2014 Kia.

Sievers reported possible, unknown injuries, and was transported to the hospital by Glenwood Rescue.

The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust has awarded the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) Bureau of Emergency and Trauma Services (BETS) a $10.1 million grant to provide law enforcement officials and first responders throughout the state with more than 4,000 automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) to improve cardiac arrest survival. The three-year project aims to equip every law enforcement vehicle in the state with an AED and train law enforcement professionals to deliver the best care prior to the arrival of Emergency Medical Services (EMS). Additionally, the project will equip conservation officers and staff at state parks with AEDs.

Studies conducted by the American Heart Association demonstrate a dramatically higher survival rate for cardiac patients defibrillated by law enforcement, who are generally first on the scene, especially in rural areas. “On behalf of law enforcement officers and first responders across Iowa, I want to thank the Helmsley Charitable Trust for their commitment to saving lives,” said Iowa Department of Public Safety Commissioner Stephan Bayens. “When tragedy strikes, officers respond. This donation will put a defibrillator in up to 4,000 patrol cars and will equip officers with the ability to provide immediate and effective lifesaving efforts. There is no doubt lives will be saved and families transformed as a result of this generosity.”

During the first year of the grant, BETS will distribute LIFEPAK® CR2 defibrillators designed by Stryker to all participating law enforcement agencies for primary response vehicles. Master trainers throughout Iowa will teach and refresh CPR and AED skills, and agencies and training academies are invited to check out training devices for continued refresher training. Communication regarding the training requirements and device distribution will be sent through the ILEA contact lists and through the IDPH/BETS local public health, hospital and EMS coalitions.

The extreme time sensitivity of cardiac arrest makes it imperative that all responders within the out-of-hospital “Chain of Survival”[1] have the tools, technology, and training to maximize the chance of survival and recovery for victims of cardiac arrest. The six links in chain, according to the American Heart Association, are:

Recognition of cardiac arrest and activation of the emergency response system
Early cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) with an emphasis on chest compressions
Rapid defibrillation
Basic and advanced emergency medical services
Advanced life support and post-cardiac arrest care
Recovery (including additional treatment, observation, rehabilitation, and psychological support)
The staff at BETS is committed to working with law enforcement agencies to assure the first three steps of the chain are maximized.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s Republican-dominated Legislature is set to discuss a bill that would drastically rewrite state election law in a way that critics say would favor the party. The bill to be discussed later Wednesday during committee hearings would further restrict voting by mail and early voting, and would threaten county auditors with fines and criminal charges for ignoring state guidance.

It targets voting options that are popular across the state, including casting ballots by mail or doing so early and in person at county offices or satellite locations. The bill would cut the state’s mail and in-person early voting period from 29 days to 18 days just four years after Republicans whittled it down from 40 days.

(Radio Iowa) – Officials plan to tweak the state health department’s coronavirus website later this week in order to better reflect some of the figures, especially with regards to COVID-19 test results. Kelly Garcia, director of the Iowa Department of Human Services, says home COVID test kits are becoming more popular and cheaper.

Garcia says the shift from individual tests to total tests on the website means that Iowa’s overall positivity rate will align with total test results. Governor Kim Reynolds says more vaccine is going to be made available to Iowa as of next week. The state’s allotment should climb from nearly 50-thousand doses a week to 62-thousand, an increase of 24-percent.

CARROLL, Iowa (AP) — Fire officials are looking into what caused a fire and explosions at a western Iowa propane and fuel distribution business. Television station WOI reports that several fire departments spent hours putting out a blaze reported shortly before 10 p.m. Tuesday at Al’s Corner Oil Company in Carroll County. Firefighters at the scene said the fire ignited several propane tanks stored at the business, with one person saying “it sounded like jet engines taking off. The ground was shaking.” No injuries were immediately reported. The company is the home office for 26 convenience stores in west central Iowa and provides farm fuel and propane delivery for commercial and residential customers.

ATLANTIC – Cass County Health System (CCHS) and its affiliate organizations have released their scholarship applications for the upcoming school year, including a new scholarship designated for nursing. CCHS Chief Nursing Officer Amanda Bireline says “CCHS is proud to be actively involved with the education of the next generation of nurses by serving as a clinical site for local and regional nursing programs. The addition of this scholarship is just one more way to positively contribute to the future of nursing. There is no better place to make that investment than in our rural communities, where we know students and their families have experienced the importance of high-quality rural healthcare. It is our goal to retain our best and brightest talents right here at home.”

2021 Scholarships:

• CCHS offers a $500 scholarship to a southwest Iowa student who is enrolled or accepted into a nursing program. Deadline is April 1, 2021.
• CCHS offers a $500 scholarship to a southwest Iowa student pursuing a degree in a health-related career. Deadline is April 1, 2021.
• CCHS Auxiliary provides grant-in-aid scholarships for students pursuing a health-related career. Deadline is April 1, 2021.
• CCHS Foundation offers $10,000 in scholarships to students who are enrolled and have been accepted into a nursing or medical doctor educational program. The scholarships were established by a bequest from Louie and Elsie Hansen. Deadline is April 1, 2021.

Dave Chase, CCHS Foundation Board Member and Scholarship Committee Member, says “The Hansens believed strongly in the importance of education and the need for well-trained healthcare professionals we are proud to continue this scholarship in their memory.” Two $5,000 awards will be presented and consideration will be given to applicants’ academic, citizenship, and leadership abilities. Applications are available online at casshealth.org.

In 2020, CCHS Foundation was able to award three $5,000 scholarships to Emily Wittrock, Tyler Steele, and Natalia Kunze.

Scholarship applications are due to the CCHS Foundation no later than April 1, 2021. For further information, contact Dawn Marnin, CCHS Foundation Director, at 712-243-7409 or mardd@casshealth.org. Applications are available on www.casshealth.org, and can be turned in to the Public Relations Office by the respective deadlines listed above. For more information, contact Kat Niemann, Communications Specialist, at 712-250-8022.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — Police in Davenport say a man has been arrested on suspicion of killing his mother. The Quad-City Times reports that police were called to the PR Masonry Apartments in Davenport late Tuesday afternoon to check on the welfare of a person. Arriving officers found the body of 77-year-old Dianna Rupp inside one of the units.

Police have not said how she died. Police on the scene arrested Rupp’s son, 53-year-old Andrew Rupp. He was initially charged with interference of official acts and drug possession. Police say he was later charged with first-degree murder.