DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Gov. Terry Branstad wants a judge to dismiss a lawsuit seeking to force him to reopen two shuttered state mental health centers.  Attorneys for the Republican governor filed a motion Monday in Polk County District Court, asking a judge to throw out the suit from the head of the state’s largest public employees union and 20 Democratic lawmakers.

The lawsuit claims closing the centers in Clarinda and Mount Pleasant was illegal because Iowa law requires the state to operate them. But the filing from the state Attorney General’s office questions that interpretation of state law and whether the group has grounds to sue.

A spokesman for Danny Homan, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, says they will respond soon and hope the case will continue.

A Harrison County man remains free on his own recognizance while a Vehicular Homicide – Operating Under the Influence case, makes its way through the court system in Cass County. According to online court records, Attorney Joseph Hrvol appeared on behalf of 50-year old Paul William Marshall, of Modale,  Tuesday, in Cass County District Court. During the proceedings, it was announced Marshall would waive his preliminary hearing.

A Criminal Complaint filed by the Iowa State Patrol’s District 3 office in Council Bluffs, says Marshall was under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or a combination of substances, when he drove the wrong way on Interstate 80 eastbound in Cass County on May 16th, and caused a collision that took the life of 31-year old Peter John Underwood, from Lincoln, NE. Underwood was an assistant soccer coach at the University of Nebraska, who was on a recruiting trip.

The complaint says Marshall’s BAC (or, Blood Alcohol Content) was greater than the legal limit of .08 (point-Oh-eight). No court date has been set.

The Glenwood Police Dept. reports 32-year old Rudy Camarillo, of Glenwood, was arrested Thursday (today), for OWI first Offense, Harassment and Interference with official acts. His bond was set at $3,300.

Iowa ranks in the middle of the pack on a new report detailing how successfully the states are waging war on cancer. The report from the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network uses nine key benchmark areas where states play a critical role in reducing cancer incidence and death. Jen Schulte, the organization’s director of government relations, says each state gets either a red mark for falling short, a yellow mark for making some progress or a green mark for doing well.

“We have a split between red, yellow and green,” Schulte says. “We have four red, two yellow and three green. As a result Iowa, continues to look at policies that are in red. We hope to continue to work on the indoor tanning ban for minors and increasing our tobacco prevention funding.”

While the Centers for Disease Control recommends Iowa spend 30-million dollars a year on tobacco prevention efforts, Iowa only spends about 5-million. In the yellow category, Iowa is making some progress in areas like its cigarette tax rates and in Medicaid coverage of tobacco cessation programs. Out of the nine benchmarks, Iowa only had three green ratings for areas where the state is doing well.

“One is pain policy, two is the increased access to Medicaid or our Iowa Health and Wellness plan that we passed in 2013 and then finally, our Smoke-free Air Act,” Schulte says. However, she notes that act — which bars smoking in workplaces and public places statewide — still contains the loophole allowing people to smoke on casino floors, something the group would like to see abolished.

On this year’s report, only three states meet six out of the nine benchmarks that were measured and no state met seven or more, so she says Iowa isn’t doing bad, comparatively. “I think we’re pretty level with a lot of the other states,” Schulte says. “Our bordering states, we’re very similar with the red categories but overall, I think we’re right in the middle.”

This is the 13th year for the report, called: “How Do You Measure Up? A Progress Report on State Legislative Activity to Reduce Cancer Incidence and Mortality.” See the full report for Iowa and any other state at the website of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network: www.acscan.org

(Radio Iowa)

A conservative Christian organization that hosted 10 Republican presidential candidates last month at an event in Ames is turning a new lobbying effort toward Iowa Governor Terry Branstad. Bob Vander Plaats, President and C-E-O of The Family Leader, says “To encourage Governor Branstad to defund Planned Parenthood and, if anything, he needs to launch an investigation of Planned Parenthood and be willing to prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law when it’s proved that there’s wrongdoing.”

Vander Plaats ran against Branstad in 2010 in the Republican Primary and Vander Plaats points to a statement Branstad made during a primary debate. Branstad said five years ago that state taxpayer funding “for groups like Planned Parenthood” should end. Vander Plaats says “I think Governor Branstad should follow Governor Jindal’s lead in Louisiana, defund (Planned Parenthood) immediately, investigate and prosecute.”

No state or federal tax dollars are being spent on abortions performed at Planned Parenthood, but the organization does get government funding for reproductive health exams, sexually-transmitted disease tests and birth control for low-income patients. Renewed efforts to end taxpayer funding of those Planned Parenthood services comes after an anti-abortion group released undercover videos and has accused Planned Parenthood of profiting from the sale of fetal tissue. Planned Parenthood denies the charge.

The Family Leader has started an on-line petition drive, plus Vander Plaats and others are planning a rally at the statehouse on August 15th to protest those videos.
“We’re going to stand up for the sanctity of human life,” Vander Plaats says, “and hopefully we end the subsidies to such a dark organization.” A spokesman for Governor Branstad says the governor is “appalled” by the undercover videos and has directed officials in the Iowa Department of Public Health to ensure the state’s “Family Planning Block Grant…does not and will not ever fund abortions or operations related to abortion procedures.”

Planned Parenthood’s national president says the American people have “zero appetite” for political efforts to “deny health care, including birth control,” to millions of American women. According to the 2014 annual report from Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, nearly half of its patients were getting birth control. Abortion accounted for two percent of patient services.

(Radio Iowa)

The Iowa Dept. of Public Health (IDPH) says funding appropriated by the Iowa Legislature to Department is available to assist qualifying families with costs associated with the death of a child. The program is administered statewide through Page County Public Health.

The Legislature approved $100,000 for the program in July, 2014 and applications may be retroactive to that date. Funds are available to help families with expenses including funeral, burial, cremation, cemetery costs, and grave marker costs. Funds are reimbursable to the family, funeral director, or monument retailer, at the discretion of the family.

Families must meet qualifications and complete an application for the funding. Qualifications include:

• Must be an unintended death of a child under the age of 18
• Must meet income requirements of 145 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines
• Must comply with submission of the following documents:
  Copy of pay stubs or previous years taxes
  Copy of death Certificate

To request an application for funding assistance, please contact Angie Hakes at (712) 850-1212, extension 212 or Brandy Powers at (712) 850-1211, extension 211. You may also make a request by mail or fax at: Page County Public Health, 112 E. Main St, Clarinda, IA 51632. Fax number: (712) 542-5030.