A nursing home management corporation which runs 11 facilities in Iowa, including the Colonial Manor in Anita, and the Denison Care Center, has been sanctioned by the federal government for allegedly employing workers who had been barred from working in a federally funded health care facility. The Des Moines Register reports in its Sunday edition, that HCM Management has agreed to pay more than $200,800 for the violation. In a separate settlement agreement, Bethany Lutheran Home in Council Bluffs, which allegedly overbilled the government for Medicaid and Medicare claims, agreed to pay $675,000. A total of $875,000 in penalties was levied against the two nursing home groups. 

The Register reports, that in the HCM case, the Inspector General at the U-S Department of Health and Human Services alleged the company employed two persons it knew or should have known where excluded from participating in federally funded health care programs. HCM officials issued a written statement to the Register saying all persons applying for work at HCM managed properties “Undergo a rigorous background check.” 

In addition to the financial settlement with the Feds, Bethany Lutheran Home in Council Bluffs agreed to enter into a “Corporate integrity” agreement, which requires the facility to provide additional staff training in what services can be billed to Medicaid and Medicare. The 121-bed care facility is also required to create annual reports detailing efforts to ensure compliance, and submit those reports to the I-G’s office.

On Saturday, June 23, 2012, Duane Weirich rode his World’s Largest Bicycle along the street in downtown Lewis.  The bike stands 18 feet high and 32 feet long.  It was originally built for a RAGBRAI visit through Lewis, but Weirich added a chain system and other modifications to make it a working bicycle.  It looked like a lot of pedaling to get it up the street!  Duane was never in danger of getting a speeding ticket!!!  Click on the thumbnails to enlarge the pictures.

A man who allegedly robbed the Great Western Bank in Hamburg June 11th was taken into custody on unrelated charges in Missouri.

Nathan W. Smith (Bank robbery suspect)

The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office said Saturday (today), Police in Higginsville, MO., arrested 47-year old Nathan Wayne Smith of Lexington, Missouri, on Driving Under the Influence (DUI) and Possession of a Controlled Substance (PCS) charges.  Smith was also being held in the Lafayette County, MO., jail on a warrant out of Fremont County, for 2nd degree robbery.

With KJAN News Director Ric Hanson….

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (8.4MB)

Subscribe: RSS

The latest area News from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson….

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (6.0MB)

Subscribe: RSS

Many rural Iowa communities are losing a valuable resource: attorneys. The state bar association reports it’s a growing crisis as small town lawyers are retiring and few are willing to take their place. Some small town residents are struggling to get basic legal services they need to sell a house or draft a contract. Phil Garland, chair of the bar’s Rural Practices Committee, says they’re teaming up with the University of Iowa to place law students in rural areas this summer. “We’re also expanding it to really try to encourage a lot of us in small town Iowa to hire a clerk during the summer, to take a spin and really see what life is like in a small town,” Garland says.

Some Iowa towns currently have no resident attorneys, according to Garland. He says Adams County now has just two attorneys and several other rural counties have only three or four. The program is placing eight law students in small towns this summer with plans to add more students next year. Garland was a guest on Iowa Public Radio’s “River to River” program.

(Radio Iowa)

Authorities in Fremont County have issued an arrest warrant for a Missouri man, in connection with a bank robbery earlier this month, in Hamburg.

Nathan W. Smith (Bank robbery suspect)

Fremont County Sheriff Kevin Aistrope says the warrant was issued for47-year-old Nathan Wayne Smith, of Lexington, MO.  An investigation by Aistrope’s office and the FBI determined Smith was the man behind the June 11th robbery of the Great Western Bank, in Hamburg.

Smith, a black male, was described as being in his early 20s, approximately 5-6, to 5-8, inches tall, and 175 pounds. Anyone with information as to the location of Nathan Wayne Smith, should call the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office at 1-800-432-9210, or the Omaha FBI office, at 1-402-493-8688.  The man is to be considered dangerous, and should not be approached by the public.

Authorities in Montgomery County arrested a Red Oak woman Friday evening on a charge of Tampering with a witness. Officials with the Red Oak Police Department say 58-year-old Michelle Dawn Ronfeldt was being held on $2,000 bond. Additional details about the incident which lead to her arrest, are currently not available.

Several southwest Iowa Amateur or “Ham” Radio operators will offer the public a chance to meet and talk with those individuals during an event being held this weekend, near Grant. Rob Koppert, 911 Director for Cass County, along with Red Oak Police Chief Drue Powers, who is the emergency communications liaison for Montgomery County, will operate their amateur radio stations at Pilot Grove County Park on County Road H14 about 3 miles west of Grant, from 2:00pm today (Saturday), until sometime early Sunday morning, as part of the annual “Field Day” event.

The Field Day is the climax of the week long “Amateur Radio Week” sponsored by the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the national association for Amateur Radio. Using only emergency power supplies, ham operators will construct emergency stations in parks, shopping malls, schools and backyards around the country. Their slogan, “When All Else Fails, Ham Radio Works” is more than just words to the hams as they prove they can send messages in many forms without the use of phone systems, internet or any other infrastructure that can be compromised in a crisis. More than 35,000 amateur radio operators across the country participated in last year’s event.

Over the past year, there have been many reports in the news, of ham radio operators providing critical communications during unexpected emergencies in towns across America including in Creston, during a devastating tornado,  the California and Colorado wildfires, winter storms, and other events world-wide. Amateur Radio’s people are often the first to provide rescuers with critical information and communications. Often called “hams,” they provide backup communications for everything from the American Red Cross to FEMA and even for the International Space Station, all for free.

The public is invited to come to the local event this weekend, and learn more about what modern Amateur Radio can do. They can even help you get on the air. To learn more about Amateur Radio, go to www.emergency-radio.org.

A tractor-trailer driver from Richmond, British Colombia was injured Friday afternoon during a collision on Interstate 29, in Mills County. According to the Iowa State Patrol, 56-year old Michael Vostrov was driving a 2003 Volvo semi northbound on Interstate 29 at around 2:50-p.m., when the rig slammed into the rear of another semi that was slowing for a traffic problem ahead. The other semi, a 1999 Kenworth, was driven by 31-year old Yevgeniy Martyn, of Vancouver, WA.

Officials say following the collision, the semi driven by Vostrov came to rest in the east ditch. Vostrov was flown by Lifenet helicopter to the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. A report on his condition is not available.