(Radio Iowa) – A bill that includes a wide range of health-related topics is headed to Governor Kim Reynolds’ desk. It includes many of her own proposals, like requiring banning certain food dyes and additives in food served in Iowa schools and requiring Iowa medical students to complete 40 hours of coursework on nutrition and how the human body converts food into energy.
Legislators added a 60-minute-per-day limit on screen-time in elementary grades and there must be at least 40 minutes of daily physical activity for students in kindergarten through 4th grade. Republican Senator Kara Warme of Ames says the goal is to inspire healthy habits in kids.
“We are leading here because we care about kids in our state,” Warme said, “and not everything that we do to improve health or education comes from throwing more money at it.” The bill requires state officials to keep applying for federal permission to restrict food assistance to healthy foods. Representative Austin Harris, a Republican from Moulton, says that’s an important element in the bill.
“Mountain Dew and Skittles does not alleviate food insecurity,” Harris said. Senator Molly Donahue, a Democrat from Marion who opposed the bill, says it should have focused on expanding access to health care in rural Iowa. “Instead this bill promotes use of ivermectin and makes it harder for working families to access SNAP,” Donahue said. The bill would let Iowa pharmacists dispense ivermectin over the counter.
Representative Austin Baeth, Democrat from Des Moines, says ivermectin can cause seizures and liver failure and should only be dispensed by a prescription issued by a doctor. “This legislation missed its mark,” Baeth said. “….This was not crafted with science. This was crafted with politics.”
The bill passed the Senate on a 30-to-16 vote yesterday (Monday). The House approved it last week on a 61-to-31 vote. Governor Reynolds calls it Iowa’s Makes American Healthy Again bill and she says it takes common sense steps to improve health and well-being for Iowans of all ages.
