United Group Insurance

Farm Bureau to begin selling health plans

Ag/Outdoor, News

April 11th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

The Iowa Farm Bureau is moving ahead with plans to sell new “health benefit” plans to perhaps tens of thousands of Iowans through Wellmark after legislation was signed into law last week by Governor Kim Reynolds. Iowa Farm Bureau President Craig Hill says the new law corrects a problem that was created by the federal government’s Affordable Care Act. “It provides us the opportunity to bring benefits to our members in health care,” Hill says. “We’ve done this for nearly 50 years as a partner with Wellmark but the Affordable Care Act eliminated our options and took us out of the market because of that legislation.”

Hill says one of the most pressing issues for farmers has been the inability to buy affordable health care. “Premiums have risen 300% since 2014 and many families are paying 20- and 30- and sometimes $35,000 a year for a policy with a large deductible,” Hill says. “It’s taken them out of the market. They’re going without insurance because they can’t afford it. They’re borrowing money to pay the premium.” Hill sees the new health benefit package becoming available by the end of this year or early next year. “We think there’s 20-to-30,000 Iowans who quickly will move toward this,” Hill says. “They’re on the individual marketplace and are either without a policy or are on an unaffordable policy. There will be more next year. We’re working with Wellmark to get the underwriting prepared and get the policies out.”

The Iowa Farm Bureau plan is under the rules for association plans offered by groups that have something in common, such as belonging to an association or a small employer. The Trump administration is drawing up new rules to offer health benefits outside the Affordable Care Act.

(Radio Iowa)

Skyscan Forecast for Atlantic & the area, 4/11/18

Weather

April 11th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

Today: Partly cloudy & windy. High 70. SW @ 15-25mph.

Tonight: P/Cldy. Low 43. Winds becoming N @ 5-10.

Tomorrow: P/Cldy. High 68. E @ 5-10.

Friday: P/Cldy to Cloudy w/a chance of showers. High 70.

Saturday: Cldy & windy w/a chance of rain. High 43.

Tuesday’s High in Atlantic was 61. Our Low was 21. Last year on this date our High was 64 and the Low was 30. The record High in Atlantic on this date was 91 in 1996. The Record Low was 18, in 1956 & 2004.

Midwest Sports Brief: 4/11/18

Sports

April 11th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Matt Carpenter hit a two-run home run with no outs in the 11th inning to lift the St. Louis Cardinals over the Milwaukee Brewers 5-3. Carpenter turned around a pitch from J.J. Hoover for the third game-ending homer of his career. It capped a night in which St. Louis rallied from one-run deficits in the ninth and 10th innings.

NEW YORK (AP) — St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina and Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo both have been suspended one game for their dustup over the weekend. Molina, who bumped plate umpire Tim Timmons during the bench-clearing dispute, has appealed and can continue to play until the process is complete. The Cardinals were hosting Milwaukee. Lovullo, who also was fined, missed a game at San Francisco.

UNDATED (AP) — Mark McGwire says he could have hit 70 home runs in a season without taking performance-enhancing drugs. The current bench coach for the San Diego Padres tells The Athletic he regrets taking the drugs because he “didn’t need to.” McGwire hit a single-season record 70 home runs in 1998 while with the St. Louis Cardinals. McGwire says he wished there was testing when he played because there’s “no way” he would have used PEDs.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Felix Hernandez pitched into the sixth inning, Guillermo Heredia homered and the Seattle Mariners bounced back from a blowout loss to Kansas City with an 8-3 rout of the Royals. Hernandez was shelled his last time out in San Francisco, but allowed three runs, six hits and a walk in 5 2/3 innings against Kansas City.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Royals have placed Alex Gordon on the disabled list with a torn hip labrum and recalled fellow outfielder Abraham Almonte from Triple-A Omaha. Gordon woke up with pain on Monday and was examined in greater detail Tuesday, and the results showed that an old tear he’d been playing through had worsened. Royals manager Ned Yost was hopeful the recovery time will be 10 days to two weeks.

NEW YORK (AP) — Kansas and North Carolina State are the latest schools to be swept up in a bribery scandal involving college basketball. A rewritten federal indictment released in the New York case alleges that an Adidas representative paid parents of athletes willing to commit to the schools. According to court papers, the Adidas representative, who no longer works for the company, agreed to funnel $90,000 to the family of a Kansas recruit and $40,000 to a recruit at North Carolina State.

Iowa early News Headlines: Wed., April 11 2018

News

April 11th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:50 a.m. CDT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has signed into law an immigration enforcement bill that bans so-called sanctuary cities. The Republican governor signed the bill privately Tuesday. The news was tucked into a press release about 16 other bill signings. The legislation will require law enforcement to follow requests from federal agents to hold a jailed person suspected of being in the country illegally. Local governments risk losing state funding if they don’t comply with the law.

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) — The University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls is proposing an undergraduate resident tuition increase of 2.8 percent for the upcoming academic year. The Courier reports that the Iowa Board of Regents will provide the first of two readings on the proposed rates for all three of Iowa’s public universities on Wednesday and Thursday in Council Bluffs.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa board has put on hold plans to require public workers in the state to preregister to vote in key union elections. The Public Employment Relations Board announced Tuesday it would not move ahead with proposed administrative rules that would have required a registration process before so-called recertification elections. Representatives for several unions said at a legislative committee meeting last week that such a system would suppress voter participation.

AMES, Iowa (AP) — An Ames manufacturing plant has been fined following the workplace death in January of an employee. Des Moines television station KCCI reports that the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration has fined Danfoss Power Solutions $12,000 following an investigation into the Jan. 18 death of 45-year-old John Lavery.

UNI proposes 2.8 percent hike in resident tuition

News

April 10th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) — The University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls is proposing an undergraduate resident tuition increase of 2.8 percent for the upcoming academic year. The Courier reports that the Iowa Board of Regents will provide the first of two readings on the proposed rates for all three of Iowa’s public universities on Wednesday and Thursday in Council Bluffs.

UNI’s proposed rate, which comes to a $209 jump, is below the maximum 4 percent threshold established by the board earlier this year. With 90 percent of its undergraduate students coming from Iowa, UNI enrolls the highest proportion of resident undergraduates of all three public universities, which include the University of Iowa and Iowa State University.

Adair County 4-H and FFA Lamb and Meat Goat Weigh-in Set for Saturday, April 28th

Ag/Outdoor

April 10th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

Officials with ISU Extension in Adair County said Tuesday, that all Adair County 4-H and FFA market lamb and market goat exhibitors must weigh and tag their animals at a countywide weigh-in event on Saturday, April 28th, from 8:30–10:30am,  at the Adair County Fairgrounds in Greenfield. Official ear tags are $1.50 each and must be purchased at weigh-in. For further information, contact Adair County Extension at     641-743-8412.

Fuel tanks stolen from Ag company in Afton

News

April 10th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

The Union County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday, that officials with Agriland FS, Inc., of Winterset, reported Monday morning, that sometime between Sunday and Monday,  someone stole fuel from their bulk tanks in Afton.  The loss was estimated at $1,600.

Cass County Sheriff’s report (4/10)

News

April 10th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports Brian Todd Rink, of Atlantic, turned himself in to the Sheriff’s Office Tuesday, on a DCI charge of Assault. Rink plead guilty to an amended charge of simple assault, was fined and placed on placed on six-months unsupervised release before being released.

BRUCE HEILESEN, 66, of Harlan (Svcs. 04/12/2018)

Obituaries

April 10th, 2018 by admin

BRUCE HEILESEN, 66, of Harlan died Monday, April 9th at home. Funeral services for BRUCE HEILESEN will be held Thursday, April 12th at 11:00am at Pauley-Jones Funeral Home in Harlan.

Visitation will be held Wednesday, April 11th from 4:00pm-8:00pm at Pauley-Jones Funeral Home in Harlan with family present from 6:00pm-8:00pm.

Burial will be in the Harlan Cemetery.

BRUCE HEILESEN is survived by:

Mother: Darlene (Jensen) Heilesen of Harlan.

Daughters: Bailey Heilesen of Harlan. Johanna (Chad) (Heilesen) Lyon of Sutherland, NE.

Daughters’ Mother: Annie Hammer of Harlan.

Sister: Pat (Don) Holdsworth of Irwin.

Brother-in-law: Lance Carver of Zearing.

2018 State Qualifying Track Meet assignments released

Sports

April 10th, 2018 by admin

The Iowa High School Athletic Association released the assignments for State Qualifying Track Meets on Tuesday. It will be a literal sprint for teams to prepare for those meets this season as those meets are 30 days away despite the fact that very few meets have been completed due to the poor spring weather.

In Class 3A Atlantic will be a host site and teams competing there will be ADM, Atlantic, Carroll, Creston, Denison-Schleswig, Glenwood, Harlan, and Winterset. Follow the links below to see full assignment lists.

Class 4A

Class 3A

Class 2A

Class 1A