Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is introducing legislation he says is designed to reform an economic development program which he describes as “out of control” with fraud and national security threats. The program, E-B-Five, was created in 1990 to prompt foreign investors into putting between 500-thousand and a million dollars into capital investment projects in rural America and in other job-starved areas.

Grassley says, “Many of the investments are going to projects in ritzy, well-to-do neighborhoods like those in Manhattan and Miami, instead of rural America and communities that need to boost employment and need help the most.”The program offers “green cards” to the foreign investors but over the decades, Grassley says significant problems have developed with the well-intended effort.

“The government has little ability to detect or prevent fraud,” Grassley says. “We don’t always know where the money for these projects is coming from and the government isn’t doing a good job of vetting the immigrant investors.” Grassley chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee and says the E-B-Five program will expire at the end of this month and Congress has to decide whether to pass legislation to continue it or let it vanish.

Grassley says, “I introduced a bill with Senator Patrick Leahy, the top Democrat on the committee I chair, to put rural America and economically-distressed neighborhoods back on an equal footing with wealthy, urban neighborhoods when competing for investors.”

The legislation would also improve oversight and accountability, according to Grassley, while reducing scams and addressing national security concerns.

(Radio Iowa)

Officials with Atlantic Specialty Care, in Atlantic (1300 E. 19th St.), report the care facility has received a “Deficiency Free” result on its annual survey in September by the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals. Administrator Kellie Jimerson says that makes two years in a row for the deficiency free designation.

Jimerson says the past year has been one of many honors for Atlantic Specialty Care. In the fall of 2015, Atlantic Specialty Care was honored by the American Health Care Association with its Silver National Quality Award. Iowa Governor Terry Branstad will be in Atlantic on Sept. 23rd, to award Atlantic Specialty Care with the “2016 Governor’s Award for Quality Care in Health Care Facilities.” The event begins at 10:30-a.m.

The annual survey, which is conducted over several days, covers over 500 quality, safety and performance issues such as medication management, proper skin care, assessment of resident’s needs, respect for residents rights and dignity, food service, environment and administration. The complete evaluation includes a tour of the facility, review of residents’ clinical records, and interviews with residents and family members about life and the care they are receiving.

With the increase in regulations, achieving the distinction of a “deficiency-free” survey is very prestigious. It means Atlantic Specialty meets or exceeds all state and federal standards.

Jimserson says “Our entire facility, including residents, staff, families and volunteers work together as a team to make Atlantic Specialty Care a safe and comfortable living community. Our goal is to help people with life’s health transitions and we think we do a great job of that.”

Atlantic Specialty Care is a 90-bed skilled nursing facility offering outpatient rehabilitation services, skilled nursing care, long term care and hospice care. Atlantic Specialty Care is owned and operated by West Des Moines-based Care Initiatives, Iowa’s largest not-for-profit post-acute and senior care provider. Care Initiatives and Care Initiatives Hospice operate 55 skilled nursing, rehabilitation, Alzheimer’s/dementia, assisted living and hospice locations throughout Iowa.

For more information about Care Initiatives or Atlantic Specialty Care, visit careinitiatives.org or call 712-243-3952.

CLARINDA—The Iowa Department for the Blind (IDB) will collaborate with accessible technology vendors and local service providers at an event designed to reach out to Iowans who are experiencing vision loss and blindness. The Clarinda Vision Loss Resource Fair will be held on Thursday, September 22 from Noon until 2:00 p.m. at the Lied Public Library, 100 East Garfield St., in Clarinda.

Area residents will have the opportunity to learn how to perform tasks that have become frustrating or challenging because of vision loss and about the many ways the visually impaired maintain their independence. Attendees will also be able to ask questions of IDB staff and other service providers and see demonstrations of assistive technology devices in a friendly, low-pressure environment.

Information and items on display will include:

• Vocational rehabilitation services for retaining or seeking employment
• Tips on how to complete everyday tasks non-visually
• IDB’s Library service that provide large print, braille, and audio reading books by mail
• Resources to assist students with completing schoolwork
• Free newspaper reading services
• Computer screen readers, CCTV’s, and text-to-speech technology
• Aids and devices for everyday activities – talking clocks, magnifiers, and more.

The resource fair is part of an ongoing effort by the Iowa Department for the Blind to meet with Iowans in their communities to inform them and their families about the variety of services available. Officials say it’ss an excellent opportunity to learn about options and alternate techniques for performing everyday tasks that may not be immediately obvious when dealing with vision loss.

Demonstrations of devices and simple aids that can assist with those tasks, information about local transportation services, representatives from area service providers are just some of the exhibits that will be featured. The vision loss resource fair is not only for those persons experiencing vision loss. Family members, friends, service providers, and any interested area residents are encouraged to attend, too. The event is free and open to the public.

For more information about this event or the Iowa Department for the Blind, contact Rick Dressler, (515) 281-1314, rick.dressler@blind.state.ia.us.

No injuries were reported but one person was cited, following a collision Monday evening in Union County. The Sheriff’s Office reports 42-year old Travis Boyce, of Osceola, was traveling south in the 1700 block of Highway 169 at around 4:30-p.m., when he fell asleep at the wheel of a 2004 Ford F-150 pickup. The vehicle crossed the center line of the road and collided with a northbound 2007 International truck driven by 23-year old Andrew Stalcup, of Mt. Ayr.

Damage to the straight truck, registered to the Farmers Co-Op of Afton, was estimated at $15,000, while the pickup sustained $10,000 damage. Authorities cited Boyce for Failure to Maintain Control.

The Iowa State Bar Association is recommending that voters retain all 63 Iowa judges and three state Supreme Court justices who will be on the ballot in November. Iowa voters do not decide between two candidates when it comes to judges — they are simply asked to vote on whether a judge or justice should remain on the bench. The state bar association survey of its members was administrated by a committee led by attorney Guy Cook.

“Lawyers are asked to rate judges and justices on knowledge of the law, temperament and demeanor. Promptness of rulings. Whether the judge or justice avoids personal observations. Decides cases on the law and the facts. Not by outside influence. And is courteous and patient with litigants. And treats people fairly,” Cook says. Cook says nearly 15-hundred attorneys were surveyed to compile the rating for judges.

“You have people who really know the process and interact with these judges on a daily basis. And have the information necessary to rate them. As opposed to some anecdotal story, something people have read in the news,” Cook says. Cook says the lowest score a judge could have and still get the Bar Association’s recommendation is 51 percent. None on this year’s judges rated below a 68.

Judicial elections had been an afterthought for voters until 2010 when three state Supreme Court justices were voted off the bench following their vote for the controversial ruling that overturned Iowa law and legalized same-sex marriage in the state.

You can find out more information about the professional qualifications and background of every judge on the November 8th retention ballot at the Iowa Judicial Branch website. (www.iowacourts.gov). There is also a link there to the Iowa State Bar Association recommendations.

(Radio Iowa)

More area and State news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (7.0MB)

Subscribe: RSS

MASON CITY, Iowa (AP) – A Mason City mom has been accused of making her kids sleep in a feces-covered room. Online court records say 25-year-old Alexis Martinez was arrested Monday and is charged with three counts of felony neglect of a dependent person. Cerro Gordo County Jail records say she remained in custody Tuesday.  Court documents say Martinez forced her children, ages 2, 4 and 6, in late August to sleep for a week in a room that had feces on the walls and floor.

The Creston Police Department says officials with Agrivision (710 E. Taylor St.) in Creston, reported Monday that sometime between Aug. 13th and 14th, someone stole a zero-turn radius lawnmower from their business. The machine was valued at $3,500.

And, Monday afternoon, 52-year old Robbie Allen Dohrn, of Creston, was arrested in the 500 block of S. Birch Street in Creston, for allowing an animal to run at-large. Dohrn was cited for the offense, and then released.

The area’s top news at 7:06-a.m., w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (3.9MB)

Subscribe: RSS

The Iowa Hospital Association’s legal counsel is pushing back against Governor Terry Branstad’s statement that having private companies manage care for Iowa Medicaid patients since April 1st has prevented “significant fraud and abuse.” Natalie Ginty of the Iowa Hospital Association spoke yesterday (Monday) during a “listening post” with federal officials. “IHA wants to emphasize that historically Medicaid fraud is extremely rare in Iowa and that if MCOs were actually finding fraud in billing from providers, there would be news of indictments for these supposed crimes,” she says.

One-hundred-18 Iowa hospitals are members of the association. Ginty says hospitals are having trouble getting proper payment from the three private companies. “Instead of fraud, providers are seeing a sharp increase in unpaid or denied Medicaid claims from the MCOs due to increased prior authorizations, unclear claims filing procedures and complete confusion by the MCOs on proper reimbursement requirements,” Ginty says. “…Rather than mislead the public with unfounded claims of fraud and abuse, IHA encourages the Iowa Department of Human Services to focus on real solutions to ensure managed care works.”

Branstad released a statement Monday morning, saying “managed care is working for Iowa taxpayers by stopping improper payments.” According to the governor, there were 318-million dollars worth of “improper” Medicaid payments to Iowa hospitals, doctors and other health care providers in 2014. Since April 1st of THIS year, Dani Valentine of Iowa Specialty Hospitals and Clinics in Belmond and Clarion has tracked down nearly 30 payments due to her organization for care of Iowa Medicaid patients, but the checks were sent elsewhere. Some went to hospitals in other states.

“When I follow up…we usually get the run around,” Valentine says. “We get told: ‘Hey, we’re checking into it,’ or we get no response whatsoever and I think that’s the part that has been the most frustrating.” Confidential patient information has been misdirected by the private companies, according to Valentine. “I hope something can be done about this because six months in and all of the issues that providers and patients are dealing with is deeply, deeply frightening,” Valentine says.

Jennifer Pearson is supervisor of patient services for U-C-S Healthcare in Des Moines. Pearson says none of the three companies that have been managing care for Medicaid patients since April 1st will pay for the prescriptions for patients trying to kick an opioid addiction, so her company has been covering the cost. “We’ll not be able to sustain this for much longer,” Pearson says. “Approximately 375 patients will be affected if we can’t provide these services any more. Several people that are being successful in their recovery may be cut off of their medication, leaving them susceptible to relapse and huge setbacks from all the work that they have put in their recovery.”

According to the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, methadone costs about 18 dollars a day for out-patient treatment. Officials from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services held a “listening post” Monday for Iowans with concerns about Medicaid privatization. Governor Branstad’s office issued a news release about 90 minutes before the event began, saying there had been an “unprecedental level of outreach” about the switch to privately managed care for the 560-thousand poor, elderly and disabled Iowans who are on Medicaid.

Branstad Administration officials say they’ve held 365 meetings throughout the state during the past 20 months to talk with patients and providers about the switch. A new state law requires state officials to hold monthly “listening sessions.” The next meeting is this Wednesday, September 14th, in Waterloo.

(Radio Iowa)