(Radio Iowa) – All the recent rain has helped keep pollen counts down in Iowa, but soon enough, the state’s allergy sufferers will be red-eyed, sneezing and sniffling. Dr. Ravi Johar, at UnitedHealthcare, says while the chilly winter weather may be gone, that pesky pollen will force some Iowans to remain indoors. “Unfortunately, when you get outside, it can be a miserable time for a lot of folks. They can get what are called seasonal allergies, allergic rhinitis, things of that sort,” Johar says. “In fact, about 50-million Americans suffer from allergies like that and that costs over $3 billion in medical costs per year.”

Johar says seasonal allergies are typically at their peak during April, May and June. For now, he recommends that people with allergies try using air purifiers indoors, and limit their time outdoors. “We’re really talking about things like all the outdoor triggers, things like tree, grass, and wheat pollen,” he says. “Those would start to increase as all those plants are growing, and when we have dry, windy days, that spreads the pollen everywhere and so you have much, much higher pollen counts.” A wide variety of allergy medications are available without a prescription. Everyone’s a bit different, so if one drug doesn’t work for you, another might.

“Things like pseudoephedrine, which can help provide temporary relief from nasal stuffiness, those are different nasal sprays also that can help,” Johar says. “There’s combination medications that combine both antihistamines and the decongestants. If those over-the-counter ones don’t work, it’s probably really time to start talking to your doctor to see if there’s any prescription medication that you may take.”

He recommends running your air conditioner in your home and car to keep the pollen out. Johar also says to avoid leaving your clothes out to dry on a clothesline as they can collect pollen.

(Radio Iowa) – A guaranteed income program in central Iowa marked one year of monthly payments this week. Some of the 110 participants who get 500 dollars each month in the UpLift program spoke at an event, but used only their first names to keep their part in the program confidential. Nicole from Des Moines is using the money to start a nonprofit working with the elderly and her husband to become a lead (like the metal) abatement contractor. “It may seem like something small, but it’s something big because it’s not just for our household. It just goes out into the community. It goes out to our children. Then it’s that generational wealth that is just going to keep on going,” she says.

Skye from Altoona is a single mother of two and says UpLift helped pay for the car that got her to a class that landed her a new job at a hospital. “I got to experience my first graduation ever by getting this certificate. My kids got to see it. My kids got to be there and see mom graduate,” she says. Early data show the largest share of money, 42 percent, is spent on food. The Iowa Legislature passed a bill that was signed into law that prohibits cities and counties from enacting guaranteed income programs.

UpLift organizers say the program with finish out payments as scheduled through next spring thanks to support from private donors.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – A traffic stop in the 1700 block of 200th Street in Red Oak, Thursday evening, resulted in an arrest. Red Oak Police say 24-year-old Brandon Lane Good was taken into custody at around 7:10-p.m., for Driving While Revoked. Good was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $1,000 cash or surety bond.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds is using 17-and-a-half MILLION dollars of federal pandemic relief money to pay for prevention and treatment programs for opioid addiction. She made the allocation after the legislature failed for a second year to agree on how the state’s opioid settlement funds should be spent.

“But hopefully then they can move forward with those funds next year because I think they’re sitting on $40-some million now,” Reynolds said. “And there’s such a need.” A residential addiction treatment center in Cambridge for 12 to 18 year olds is getting three MILLION dollars to finish construction of its “Recovery Campus.”

“Get them across the finish line,” Reynolds said. “I’m just impressed with that program and the impact that it has on our youth.” Another three MILLION dollars will be distributed as grants for what are called “sober living environments” that provide safe housing for people exiting an addiction treatment program.

(Radio Iowa) – Lawmakers have directed the Iowa Natural Resources Commission to review how accessible state parks are to people with disabilities and recommend improvements. Governor Kim Reynolds signed the bill into law at Big Creek State Park. “It’s hard to imagine a better way to experience the natural beauty Iowa has to offer than by making a trip to one of our many outstanding state parks,” Reynolds says. “Every Iowan, regardless of physical ability, should have the opportunity to experience them first hand.”

The bill passed the legislature unanimously. Representative Adam Zabner, a Democrat from Iowa City, made the proposal in January.”It was because I’ve heard from so many Iowans about challenges finding outdoor opportunities that are accessible,” Zabner said.

The new law directs the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to come up with a list of opportunities for persons with disabilities in state parks and public recreation areas and put that list on the department’s website. “Iowa is such a beautiful state and I know that access to the outdoors can be transformative,” Zabner said. “This time of year, all I want to do is get out to Lake Macbride in Johnson County, so very, very excited that we were able to get this done.”

Iowa Department of Natural Resources director Kayla Lyons says new construction projects at the parks over the past dozens years have met Americans with Disabilities Act standards. Over the past five years, engineering interns traveled to all state parks with D-N-R staff to audit accessibility issues. “We want to provide facilities and experiences for everyone,” Lyons says. “…With more accessible facilities, better information on our website about accessible trails, bathrooms, fishing piers and other items.”

The agency has purchased an electronic track chair that will help Big Creek visitors with limited mobility get around the park. “It will be available to anyone now, free of charge to anyone. It’s on a first come, first served basis through our concessionaire here at Big Creek. It’s the only one we have so far, but hopefully we’ll have more in the future,” Lyons says. “We’re excited to have the combination of the track chair and our infrastructure improvements to address accessibility in our state parks.”

A grant from the Ford Motor Company’s Bronco Wild Fund paid for the track chair and a person named Jack used it to move from sidewalks to grassy areas and the beach after the bill signing ceremony. Senator Annette Sweeney, a Republican from Iowa Falls who led senate debate of the bill, says it shows how making state parks accessible will open up new adventures for some Iowans.  “With this bill being definitely a bipartisan bill, we got to work together because we believe all Iowans should be able to enjoy our great outdoors,” Sweeney said.

The legislature appropriated 250-thousand dollars to finance some of the fixes, including sidewalk and curb repairs, needed to make state park facilities more accessible to people with disabilities.

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Reynolds says she’s reviewing the situations in Cedar Rapids, Davenport and Waterloo where HyVee stores are closing for good next month and will take a look at options that might address the situation. Reynolds was in Cedar Rapids Wednesday for a bill signing ceremony. The governor and Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell spoke briefly about the closure of a HyVee in a downtown neighborhood.

“I told the mayor that we would do everything we could to work with them and take a look at, you know, where’s the food bank, where’s the opportunity…maybe we could have some type of a scaled down food mart for them,” Reynolds says. “I haven’t had a chance to sit down with HyVee yet to understand where the movement is, but our number one goal is to make sure that the constituents, the individual residents have access to food.”

The City of Cedar Rapids provided HyVee nearly a million dollars in incentives to build a new store across the street from an older, smaller HyVee. HyVee has said that location, which opened in 2002, has consistently failed to meet financial goals over the past several years. HyVee has made a similar statement about the stores in Davenport and Waterloo that will close. Advocates for residents in the neighborhoods around the three stores warn once those HyVees close, there will be no access to affordable, fresh food in those areas. Reynolds says there may be creative solutions.

“Maybe it’s a bus line that they don’t have in place where they can get on and get to one of the existing grocery stores,” Reynolds says. “…It might be as easy as that until they can figure out maybe a more long term solution.”

In June of 2018, a HyVee in Des Moines was temporarily closed after flash flooding hit the store. HyVee set up a free busing system to give customers in the neighborhood rides to and from another HyVee.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – A spokesperson for Alliant Energy, today (Thursday), said residents in Cumberland and Massena who have experience numerous, seemingly random outages of power for two or more hours, since Sunday, shouldn’t have to worry about that much longer.

Alliant Senior Communications Director Melissa McCarville tells KJAN News, “There was an equipment issue at the substation in the area. Our crews isolated the situation and are resolving it. We do not expect any further issues.”

McCarville added, “As always, we encourage our customers to contact us and report if they experience an outage. Alliant Energy Help Center can be reached by calling 1-800-ALLIANT (800-255-4268) or online at alliantenergy.com/outage.”

(Burlington, Iowa) – A man who authorities say was hearing impaired, was struck and killed by a garbage truck this (Thursday) morning, in eastern Iowa. The Iowa State Patrol reports a 2016 International garbage truck driven by 65-year-old Dale Deitrick, of Mediapolis, was backing southbound on Isabell Avenue, in Burlington.

49-year-old Brian Whittaker, of Burlington, was crossing the street, when he was hit by the truck. The accident happened at around 10:08-a.m.

Whittaker was transported by Burlington Fire/Rescue to a hospital in Burlington, where he died from his injuries.

The accident remains under investigation.