(Iowa Capital Dispatch) – A group of nonprofit advocacy organizations is seeking to intervene in a lawsuit that challenges new, federally mandated staffing levels in nursing homes. The National Association of Local Long-Term Care Ombudsmen is among seven organizations hoping to ask a federal judge to deny a request made by the nursing home industry and 20 state attorneys general – including Iowa’s Brenna Bird — for an injunction that would block implementation of the new staffing requirements. The organizations have not yet been authorized to file their “friend of the court” brief, but approval in such circumstances is normally granted.

The injunction is being sought in a lawsuit filed eight weeks ago in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa, and seeks to block implementation of the Biden administration’s new staffing requirements. The lawsuit was filed by Bird and the attorneys general of 19 other states along with 19 industry organizations who argue the new requirements are cost prohibitive and will result in nursing homes closing down.

Joining NALTCO in the fight against the attorneys general are the nonprofit organizations known as the Center for Medicare Advocacy, the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care, the Long-Term Care Community Coalition, California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, Justice in Aging, and the Michigan Elder Justice Initiative. NALTCO’s role in the case is particularly noteworthy in that the organization is comprised of members of each state’s Long Term Care Ombudsman’s Office, which were created by Congress in 1978 to serve as independent advocates for nursing home residents. Typically, each office, including that of Iowa’s Long-Term Care Ombudsman, operates within an arm of their respective state government. The result is that the ombudsmen’s national organization is now opposing the legal efforts of Republican attorneys general in states where many of those ombudsmen now work.

Photo from bettercareplaybook.org.

In October, Bird said she was leading the court challenge of the staffing mandates to ward off a “mass shutdown of nursing homes” and to “stop the Biden-Harris attack on senior care that will force nursing homes out of business.” In November 2023, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds publicly announced her opposition to the new staffing rule, joining 14 other Republican governors in signing a letter to President Joe Biden in which they argued the rule was “unrealistic” and would “harm the seniors, elderly and disabled it’s designed to help.”

According to data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, 14% of Iowa’s 422 nursing facilities were cited for insufficient staffing in fiscal year 2023, before the new requirements were enacted. That’s more than double the national average, which was 5.9%. Only five other states – Hawaii, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico and Oregon — had a worse record of compliance with the staffing requirements in place at that time.

The Iowa-led lawsuit is one of two currently working their way through the federal court system. The other lawsuit, filed in Texas, was initiated by the American Health Care Association, a lobbying organization that primarily represents for-profit nursing homes. Some observers say the litigation will have little impact on the fate of the staffing mandates since the Trump administration is expected to do away with the requirements once the president-elect take office in January 2025.

(Radio Iowa) – Technically, we’re still in late fall, but frigid wintery weather has moved in and Iowans are now at much greater risk for carbon monoxide poisoning. As we fire up the fireplace to take off the chill, or warm up the car in the garage, the dangers of poisoning from the potentially-deadly gas can mount. Janna Day is a nurse and the education and outreach manager for the Iowa Poison Control Center. “Carbon monoxide could be an issue all year long, but we see more exposures during the winter months,” Day says. “We’re closed into the home. We have our gas furnaces, potentially gas stoves. Carbon monoxide can come from a lot of different things anytime we burn a carbon-containing fuel, there’s the potential for carbon monoxide.”

A battery-operated carbon monoxide detector can cost about 20-dollars, but it can provide invaluable protection. “We really strongly recommend that you have a carbon monoxide detector in your home, whether that be its own carbon monoxide detector or one that is combined with your smoke detector as well,” Day says. “If you only have one carbon monoxide detector in your home, though, we want you to put it by the sleeping area.” Ideally, she says you should have a CO detector for every level of your home, but especially outside bedrooms. This type of poisoning can be deadly and the warning signs may be confused with something else entirely — and they can even ignored.

“Some of the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning can look a lot like flu or other illnesses where we see potentially a headache, nausea, tiredness, maybe you’re dizzy,” Day says, “so it can be hard to identify that it could be coming from carbon monoxide.”

For questions about this or any other poisons, call the Sioux City-based Iowa Poison Control Center anytime, any day, at 800-222-1222.

(Radio Iowa) – The Internal Revenue Service is holding a National Tax Security Awareness Week. I-R-S spokesman, Christopher Miller says holiday scams ramp up in December, especially ones involving taxes. “And these frequently involve unexpected good news, like you have a tax refund waiting. But they may also involve variants which tell people they’ve got a tax bill or maybe tax documents available to download. It’s all a scam,” he says. Miller says that’s not the way the organization operates. “The I-R-S does not contact people via email or text, and we don’t ask people for their personally identifiable information. That’s a big red flag,” he says. Miller says scams involving holiday packages also ramp up in an effort to get your personal information. You can prevent big problems by being aware.

“Remember, don’t click on anything unknown, even if you just ordered gifts and you’re expecting packages, double check before you click,” Miller says. Miller says catching the scammers is not easy. “A lot of times these crooks are operating from places that are abroad or they’re simply not easily tracked down. And once they have your personal information, whether it’s your credit card or a password, they have the time to do bad things quickly, and there’s not time to stop them, even if authorities could,” he says.

This is the ninth annual Tax Security Awareness Week, and Miller says they keep on reminding you about the dangers of scammers because the scammers are not letting up.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – The National Weather Service, Wednesday evening, posted a list of peak wind gusts Iowa experienced while the State was under a Wind Advisory. Preliminary data from airport weather data sites show the highest gust of 63 mph was recorded at the Des Moines International Airport, at 5:40-p.m.  17 sites recorded gusts anywhere from 50- to 59 mph. The Atlantic airport recorded a peak wind gust of 44 mph at 3:35-p.m. There were no immediate reports of damage caused by the high winds.

Top wind gusts Dec. 4, 2024 (courtesy the NWS):

(Des Moines, Iowa via KCCI) – A New Jersey semi tractor-trailer driver who led authorities on a 75-mile chase from Avoca to Van Meter early Tuesday morning on Interstate 80, is charged with eluding.  According to the criminal complaint, Jose Ariel Rosa Rivera was driving a 2021 Volvo semi-truck registered out of Illinois. When the Iowa State Patrol trooper pulled alongside the vehicle after Rosa Rivera refused to stop, the driver made eye contact with the trooper before looking ahead at the road.

Court records show a search warrant was issued for law enforcement to obtain a blood sample from Rosa Rivera to test for alcohol and other drugs. In the search warrant application, law enforcement said Rosa Rivera had bloodshot, watery eyes, “visible body tremors,” an elevated pulse while laying in a hospital bed, constricted pupils and “sporadic abdominal convulsing and heavy breathing.”

The search warrant application also says Rosa Rivera repeatedly stated “Jesus Christ is coming” to law enforcement and medical personnel. Court documents show the search warrant was executed and blood was collected from the suspect and taken to the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Crime Lab for toxicological analysis.

During the incident, various law enforcement agencies deployed stop sticks as the semi approached the Des Moines metro in eastbound lanes of I-80, successfully deflating multiple tires, the Iowa State Patrol says. The vehicle continued driving on its rims until about 8:10 a.m., when pursuing officers forced him to pull off at the weigh station between exits for Van Meter and Waukee.

Authorities used tear gas to the driver out of the cab, and he was taken to a Des Moines hospital for evaluation.

(Radio Iowa) – Wetlands in Iowa help prevent nearly 500-million dollars in flood damage every year, according to a new report from the Union of Concerned Scientists. Report author Stacy Woods says wetlands are natural floodwater barriers that absorb and slow down rushing water like a sponge. Federal data shows a decline in the number of wetlands, especially in the Prairie Pothole region, Great Lakes and southeast. Woods fears the trend could accelerate, as a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year stripped away federal protections in the Clean Water Act for many wetlands.

Woods says, “It’s critically important that we really step up to protect the wetlands that remain, because we’re going to need them as our flooding frequency increases with this warming climate.” The report’s findings build on peer-reviewed research, which estimates one acre of wetlands provides 745-dollars of flood mitigation benefits to residential homes. “We know that flooding is a significant issue,” she says. “It’s expensive, and it’s getting worse as the climate warms.”

Radio Iowa file photo

Along with flood mitigation, the report says wetlands provide habitat and food for roughly half of the endangered species in the U.S. They also act as natural pollution filters for drinking water. In the last two decades, Iowa has had six flood disasters with losses exceeding one-billion dollars.  “In our report, we were only looking at how wetlands benefit communities by mitigating flood damage,” Woods says, “but of course, wetlands bring so many benefits to communities.”

The report recommends boosting conservation programs that help restore and protect these habitats.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks says it’s time to crack down on the business practices of Pharmacy Benefit Managers or P-B-M’s. “Currently, 97% of all prescription drugs in the United States flow through just six major PBMs. These entities are destroying independent pharmacies,” Miller-Meeks says. “…This year alone, 25 independent pharmacies have closed in Iowa and this has to stop.” P-B-Ms negotiate the prices of medications on behalf of insurers.

Miller-Meeks and other critics say P-B-M’s drive down the prices paid to the pharmacies that fill prescriptions in order to pocket a bigger cut of the insurance payout.  “Every American who utilizes prescription medications experiences the impact that PBMs and vertical integration have on our health care system. Patients everywhere and our independent pharmacists especially deserve a more transparent health care system where patients always come first,” Miller-Meeks said.

Iowa Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks speaks at D.C. news conference with John Nicholson, owner of Mahaska Drug in Oskaloosa, to her left. (Photo provided by Miller-Meeks congressional staff)

Miller-Meeks is among a large, bipartisan group of lawmakers from the U-S House and Senate who are calling for passage of a bill before congress adjourns for the year.  “The time for PBM reform is now,” Miller-Meeks said.

Miller-Meeks backs legislation that would prohibit P-B-Ms from forcing patients to use a certain pharmacy rather than the one that’s closest to them. It would also ban P-B-Ms from paying lower rates to independent pharmacies than it pays affiliated pharmacies for the same services.

(Radio Iowa) – A Japanese company has agreed to pay a nearly 460-thousand dollar federal fine after two hazardous chemical releases from its grain processing facility in southeast Iowa. Ajinomoto operates two plants in Eddyville. One makes food and seasonings, the other makes animal feed. The U-S Environmental Protection Agency inspected the facilities after a 2021 incident when hydrochloric gas was released and again after a 2022 chlorine leak.

Both incidents led to evacuations and shelter-in-place orders to residents in the Eddyville area. According to the E-P-A, some Ajinomoto employees were injured by the chlorine leak two years ago. The E-P-A accused Ajinomoto of failing to coordinate with local emergency responders about the risks associated with chemicals being used at the facility. As part of the settlement, Ajinomoto has agreed to install an anhydrous ammonia containment system on its Eddyville campus.

A spokesperson for Ajinomoto was not immediately available for comment.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic City Council met this (Wednesday) evening and received a report from Atlantic Municipal Utilities General Manager Steve Tjepkes. He mentioned that in addition to the normal cost increases, their Purchased Power costs are increasing about 10-percent next year (2025). Because of that, and expected local system improvements in their 2025 Capital Projects budget, AMU will be increasing electric rates for the first time in nine-years.

Tjpekes says there will be an average overall increase of 5-percent across all rate classes in 2025. The improvements that are factored-in to AMU’s $2.4-million Capital Improvement Projects Budget, he said, include the replacement of two, 161-Kilovolt (kV) circuit breakers, which are “celebrating their 50th year of being in-place,” Tjepkes said.

On a positive note, Tjepkes said AMU was awarded a National Excellence in Reliability award for reliable electric service, compared to electric companies throughout the country, with an average service availability rate exceeding 99.9%. He said also, AMU’s electric rates are the second-lowest of all 181 utilities. Both the electric and water departments are currently debt-free, according to Steve Tjepkes.

AMU GM Steve Tjepkes

On the water operations side, AMU is planning a 10% overall water rate increase in 2025. What that means is the average residential water bill is $25/month. A 10% increase would add $2.50/per month to that bill.

The utility was awarded a $500,000 CDBG (Community Development Block Grant) to offset a portion of a planned replacement of an underground water storage tank.  The new tank will hold treated water that will be ready to be distributed throughout the system.

The Atlantic City Council passed a resolution approving the Calendar Year (CY) 2025 Budget for AMU, which the utilities’ Board of Trustees approved Monday night, following a public hearing.  The City Council also heard from Nishna Valley Family YMCA Director Dan Haynes, who mentioned the Recreational Center Building will finally be paid-off by the end of the month, through the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) Fund.

Haynes reminded the Council a project to expand and renovate the recreation center is planned in conjunction with Vision Atlantic and the Charles E. Lakin Foundation, which has committed $6.4-million in grant funds toward the YMCA portion of the Vision Atlantic project.  In other business, the Atlantic City Council acted on approving:

• An order to approve pay application number three to the Henley Group, LLC, for the Sunnyside Park Splashpad Project.
• And, the Second Reading of an ordinance amending the City’s Code of Ordinance, with regard to ATV and Snowmobile use in the City.

Councilman Shawn Sarsfield said there are some misconceptions among some citizens about the ordinance.

The Council held a Public Hearing on a proposed amendment to the Urban Renewal Plan (URP) for the Southeast Urban Renewal District (URD). The hearing was followed by action on passing a resolution to approve the amendment as presented. During their meeting on Aug. 3rd, the Council held a public hearing an passed a resolution adopting the original Prairie Hills Subdivision Project to the Southeast URD.

City Administrator John Lund noted “Amending the Urban Renewal Area to include the new Urban Renewal Project, is a prerequisite to formal debt being incurred and eligible for TIF (Tax Increment Financing) capture under a development agreement, as proposed in a resolution setting the public hearing and date for, approval of a development agreement with Vision Atlantic, which includes an annual appropriation for TIF payments. The council act on [passing] the resolution during their meeting Wednesday evening.

The final order of business for the Atlantic City Council, was act on an Order approving the Annual/Financial Urban Renewal Report, as required under the Code of Iowa.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – The Red Oak Police Department reports the arrest today (Wednesday), of 44-year old Anthony Michael Petersen. He was taken into custody in the 100 block of W. Coolbaugh Street at around 2:30-p.m., on an active Red Oak Police Department warrant for Sexual Abuse in the 3rd Degree. Petersen was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $10,000 cash-only bond.

Anthony Michael Petersen (Pott. County Jail booking photo from Aug., 2024)