DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa is tweaking its new state-funded family planning program that excludes abortion providers like Planned Parenthood by restoring some eligibility to a large hospital system that performs abortions in some cases. UnityPoint Health could soon participate again in the family planning program under a budget bill passed this month. It needs approval from Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds.
UnityPoint performs abortions in cases where a fetus is not expected to be viable. After Iowa Republicans passed legislation to launch a state-funded family planning program last July, UnityPoint representatives argued some of its health care providers should still participate in the program because those stand-alone facilities don’t perform abortions.

Republican Sen. Mark Costello says the change comes because some within his caucus initially believed the new law wouldn’t impact UnityPoint affiliates. State documents show Republican lawmakers were warned last spring it would. Planned Parenthood says it’s all legislative backpedaling that highlights GOP lawmakers’ intention to defund its organization.

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — Officials say the clinic serving veterans in Dubuque will be moved from Mercy Medical Center to a former Kmart store. The owners of the Plaza 20 center said Thursday that construction will begin immediately to transform part of the former retail space. The store closed in spring 2017. The Department of Veterans Affairs clinic is expected to offer X-rays, audiology, mental health and physical therapy services and a primary care team. It will have more than four times the space of the hospital-based clinic.

Clinic manager Ann Fessler says it serves about 5,000 veterans a year from seven counties that are home to an estimated 25,000 veterans. Fessler says the number served annually is going up.

Atlantic, IA – Officials with the Cass County Health System report Jessica Jackson, Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner, Certified Nurse Practitioner,  will present on “The Mind/Body Connection” at the next session of Healthy U, scheduled for noon on May 17th at Cass County Health System. Jackson says “Your mind can have a really profound effect on your overall health. And vice versa. When you are dealing with illness, it can take a toll on your mental well being.”

Jessica Jackson, ARNP, FNP-C

Jackson has worked as a family nurse practitioner at the Atlantic Medical Cente,r since March 2017. She provides the full scope of family medicine care for patients of all ages. Jessica grew up in Griswold and has worked at Cass County Memorial Hospital previously as a nurse. She received her Family Nurse Practitioner master’s degree from Frontier Nursing University. She is a member of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners and Iowa Nurse Practitioner Society.

Healthy U is a free educational lunch series at Cass County Health System held monthly in Conference Room 2. The public is invited and welcome to attend, but reservations are required as lunch is provided for all attendees. Call 712-243-7479 to reserve your seat.

CLARKSVILLE, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a boy died after an accidental shooting in northeastern Iowa. Butler County Sheriff Jason Johnson says in a news release that the shooting was reported around 4:45 p.m. Thursday in rural Clarksville. Officers and medics sent to the scene found three people, all under 18. The names of the boy, the others involved and how the shooting occurred have not been released. The shooting is being investigated.

Officials with the Creston Police Department said today (Friday), that a man residing in the 300 block of N. Division Street in Creston, reported late Thursday morning, that someone had broken out the back window of his vehicle. The incident happened while the vehicle was parked in a parking lot overnight Wednesday into Thursday morning. The damage was estimated at $300.

(7-a.m. News)

PLYMOUTH, Iowa (AP) — Authorities have released the name of a man killed in northern Iowa after a train struck a chemical sprayer being towed by the tractor he was driving. The accident occurred around 8 a.m. Tuesday at a spot northeast of Plymouth, in Worth County. The Iowa State Patrol says 59-year-old Brian Nack didn’t stop the tractor at a rail crossing that’s marked by a crossing sign and a stop sign. The train hit the sprayer and dragged it and the tractor several yards. Nack died after being ejected. The patrol says he lived in Grafton.