(Radio Iowa) – A woman pulled from a burning garage in Cedar Rapids early this (Thursday) morning has died. According to the Cedar Rapids Fire Department, the garage was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived, but due the intensity of the fire and a high level of debris in the garage, it took several minutes for firefighters to get inside and find the trapped woman. She was treated at the scene, then transferred to a hospital, but did not survive. The cause of the fire has not been determined.

A woman died in this Cedar Rapids garage fire. (CRFD photo)

(Radio Iowa) – State officials say more than three-thousand Iowans are on track to lose their Medicaid coverage by June 1st. During the pandemic, the state was forbidden from dis-enrolling anyone from Medicaid except in limited circumstances. That rule ended last month, which is when Iowa Health and Human Services officials started mailing out Medicaid eligibility re-determination forms. State Medicaid Director Elizabeth Matney says the state is trying multiple approaches to reach people.

“We’re following up via phone, phone call, text message,” Matney says, “and in some circumstances, especially for more vulnerable populations we are going out and knocking door to door.” About half of the forms have not yet been returned. Matney says that may be because the state is first targeting members who are most likely to no longer qualify.

“When we did a look at the 150,000-ish that we had flagged for maintaining eligibility due to the public health emergency, over 100,000 of those have other health insurance,” she says. State officials expect this Medicaid unwinding process to take about a year.

(reporting by Natalie Krebs, Iowa Public Radio)

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa’s unemployment rate dropped down to two-point-seven percent in April, compared to two-point-eight percent in March. Iowa Workforce Development spokesperson, Jesse Dougherty, says the labor force participation rate moved up slightly. “Our labor force added 43-hundred new workers. So, I think what’s notable about that is that’s not only encouraging news, you know, for the job seekers that are that are finding jobs, but also encouraging for the employers in Iowa to know that pool of available workers is growing,” he says. Dougherty says the participation rate and getting more people back looking for work is important.”It continues to climb up. And, you know, that’s, that’s something that we continue to watch that shows us, you know, the labor pool is active, the workforce is in a healthier spot than it certainly was a couple of years ago. So that’s very encouraging sign for us,” he says.

Manufacturing saw an increase of 14-hundred jobs. “That was really driven by a couple of factors within durable goods, factories, as well as some other production facilities,” Dougherty says. “We also saw growth and healthcare and retail and you know, retail has gone through some ebbs and flows the last two or three years. So that was encouraging sign to see another month, as well as healthcare. So we saw a couple of industries that really have gone through a lot. And you know, in the early days of the pandemic that have appeared to be have a little bit more steady of climb.” He says there was a negative in the overall employment number.

“We did see some slight losses over in overall non-farm employment. That was driven by some areas that, you know are receiving some general, we see that some general tightening in the economy, certainly with interest rates, and some other concerns that are there,” he says. “You know, we see some of that.” That drop was 300 jobs in total non-farm employment from March to April, the first loss since November 2022. Dougherty says it’s not a concern for the overall economy.  “Over the past 12 months we still have a net gain of over 26-thousand jobs. So that’s something we continue to look at when we’re looking at things long term,” he says.

I-W-D says the lowest Iowa unemployment rate was two-point-three percent in April 2022. That number came after the U-S Labor Department made its annual revisions for the year.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Cass County Recorder Mary Ward, today (Thursday), wants residents in the area to be aware of a scam “County Deed Records” letter some residents are receiving. Ward says “On Monday, May 1, a County Recorder’s Office assisted a resident with questions about a confusing letter they received, which was quickly identified as a scam and reported to local law enforcement.

The letter claimed to be from”County Deed Records.” It contained false information about the recipients’ home warranty expiration date. Mary Ward says “The letter also contained a ‘renewal fee voucher‘ for $199, which resembles a check, and requests immediate action to call or be left vulnerable to repair costs.” Ward warns “The Iowa County Recorders Association, in partnership with Iowa Land Records, confirm that this information is NOT legitimate. Similar illegitimate letters have been found across the county.”

“Thankfully,” Ward says, “The resident came into their local County Recorder’s Office with questions, before taking any action. If you are someone you know has received a letter claiming to be from County Deed Records, please DO NOT RESPOND to the letter in any way.”

• Do not pay
• Do not call
• Do not go to the website
• and Do not return any mail requests.

For more information, contact the Cass County Recorders Office at 712-243-1692.

Scam Voucher check

(Des Moines, Iowa) — It’s not the “garden spot” of the U-S, but Iowa does have two cities listed on a report from U.S. News and World report, for the country’s best places to live. In its annual list of Best Places to Live in the U.S., released May 15, U.S. News ranked Des Moines 19th and the Quad Cities (Davenport and Bettendorf in Iowa and Moline and Rock Island in Illinois) 54th.

The publication ranks the 150 largest metropolitan areas in the U.S. based on an analysis of quality of life, housing affordability and the job market, among other factors.

It’s a slight drop for Des Moines, which ranked 14th last year and 13th in 2021. At its highest on the list, Iowa’s capital city was fourth in 2018. The Quad Cities dropped one spot from 2022.

Downtown Des Moines, IA

Quad Cities Sky Bridge

U.S. News & World Report’s Top 20 Best Places to Live in the U.S., 2023-24

1. Green Bay, Wisconsin

2. Huntsville, Alabama

3. Raleigh and Durham, North Carolina

4. Boulder, Colorado

5. Sarasota, Florida

6. Naples, Florida

7. Portland, Maine

8. Charlotte, North Carolina

9. Colorado Springs, Colorado

10. Fayetteville, Arkansas

11. Madison, Wisconsin

12. Boise, Idaho

13. San Jose, California

14. Ann Arbor, Michigan

15. Melbourne, Florida

16. Jacksonville, Florida

17. Albany, New York

18. Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

19. Des Moines, Iowa

20. Grand Rapids, Michigan