The Cass County Board of Supervisors met at 9:00 a.m. Tuesday. During their session, County Engineer Trent Wolken reviewed current road projects.  Since the county roads are so dry, Wolken told the Board maintenance work is mainly off road (that includes driveway, culvert, shoulder, etc.)

County Auditor/Board Secretary Dale Sunderman reports, in accordance with Iowa Code, the board set the annual base salaries of those deputy sheriffs who are not classified as exempt under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. Base salaries (pay rates) submitted by Sheriff Darby McLaren per union agreement, and approved by the Board include: $28.44/hour for road Deputies Jimmy James, Corey Larsen, Joshua McLaren, and Kyle Quist; An Investigator Deputy rate of $29.44/hour for Benjamin Bartholomew, and Dog Handlers rate of $29.29/hour for Deputies Tim Olsen and Tyler Shiels.

The Board also voted 3-to 2 to strike the line for engineer’s office manager from a motion of June 16th and set the FY2021 base wages for Alice Ray at $51,955.00/year. In other business, Mental Heath/General Assistance Coordinator Deb Schuler submitted to the Board a written report on month of May activity.

During the Board’s next regular meeting 9-a.m. Tuesday, July 7th, they’ll enter into a closed session to evaluate the performance of Cass County Engineer Trent Wolken, as required in the contract, and any other matters to come before them.

Atlantic, IA — Atlantic Medical Center, RHC (AMC) is reopening the AMC Rapid Care service on Monday, July 6 in a new location and with new hours. AMC Rapid Care is walk-in care that is open seven days a week for patients of all ages. Tammy Bireline, CCHS Chief Clinic Administrator said Tuesday, “We’re very excited to relaunch this service for the community. AMC Rapid Care helps patients get the care they need for those minor health issues that can’t wait.”

Taylor Petersen, RN and Emily Nadler, PA-C. They are in one of the new AMC Rapid Care exam rooms prepping for the opening on Monday. (photo submitted)

Beginning on Monday, July 6, AMC Rapid Care will be open Monday through Friday from 8 am to 8 pm, and Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm. AMC Rapid Care has also moved; its new location is conveniently next to the CCHS Emergency Department.

AMC Rapid Care does not offer appointments; patients can just walk in, check in at the Emergency Department Admissions, and then wait to be seen by the AMC Rapid Care provider. Patients are seen on a first-come, first-served basis. Bireline says “AMC Rapid Care isn’t a substitute for your regular provider, and it’s also not a substitute for the Emergency Department. This service is really for those minor health issues – ear infections, nasal congestion, minor stitches – that can’t wait.”

Similarly, AMC Rapid Care providers will not address chronic conditions or take care of prescription refills because those issues are most appropriate to be discussed during an appointment with a primary care provider. It is also important to note that AMC Rapid Care providers will not prescribe narcotics.

The medical team at AMC Rapid Care includes Rebecca McCann, ARNP, Emily Nadler, PA-C, and Dr. M.A. Johnson. Dr. Johnson will also continue to work in the Emergency Department. The cost of a visit to AMC Rapid Care is the same as office fees for Atlantic Medical Center appointments; regular co-payments still apply and should be paid during the check-in process.

The area previously occupied by AMC Rapid Care is now a Respiratory Care Clinic that is a dedicated space to care for patients with any respiratory or COVID-19 type of symptoms. All patients with new or worsening cough, new or worsening shortness of breath, or other symptoms that they think may be related to COVID-19 should call 712-243-2850 and press 1 to speak with the CCHS COVID-19 hotline.

Health officials in Mills and Pottawattamie Counties, Tuesday, each reported additional, positive cases of COVID-19. In Mills County, there were two new cases of the virus, affecting adults age 41-to 60. Both cases were contracted through community spread, and bring the total number of confirmed cases in Mills County to 34. Officials say 30 of those persons have recovered, and a total 1,919 people have been tested for COVID-19.

Pottawattamie County Public Health reports seven new cases of COVID-19 since Monday. All seven individuals are from Council Bluffs, and bring the total number of cases in the county to 741. Officials say based on contact tracing investigations, 223 cases are the result of community spread. Of the 741 cases, 162 persons are self-isolating, five are hospitalized, 544 have recovered, 11 have died and 26 were non-residents or persons who have moved.

By a slim majority, women outnumber men in the demographics of those who have tested positive in Pottawattamie County. The majority of cases are persons 18-to 40 years of age, while the 41-to 60 age group comprises the second highest number of persons affected by the virus.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Detectives have made a second arrest in the weekend fatal shooting of a Keokuk man whose body was found on a road. police said Tuesday. Des Moines police say that 34-year-old Amanda Gail Wright of Des Moines was charged Tuesday with first-degree murder and robbery. Police were called Saturday night to an industrial area east of downtown and found 41-year-old Michael Thurman dead on the road.

On Sunday, police charged Andrew James Hall, 27, of Des Moines, with first-degree murder and first-degree robbery. He was being held in the Polk County Jail. Police say no additional arrests are expected.

An Iowa judge has issued an injunction halting the state’s latest abortion restriction, a 24-hour waiting period, a day before the measure was set to become law. Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the bill on Monday, but the order issued by state court Judge Mitchell Turner prevents it from becoming law until a court can determine whether it’s constitutional.

Planned Parenthood of the Heartland filed a lawsuit last week challenging the law claiming that it violates the due process and equal protection rights of women seeking an abortion, much like a 72-hour waiting period law the Iowa Supreme Court struck down in 2018.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has signed a bill that will deny county officials the ability to use a voter database to confirm missing or incorrect information on absentee ballot requests. The measure was part of a massive budget bill. Reynolds had the option of using the line-item veto but she did not.

She signed the bill Tuesday, allowing the measure to become law. It requires county election officials to call, email or mail a letter to voters who make a mistake or leave information off an absentee ballot request form. County election officials opposed it. Democrats labeled it voter suppression.

ACKLEY, Iowa (AP)/ With extra from Radio Iowa — An SUV carrying Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds hit a Black Lives Matter protester who was trying to block her vehicle as she was leaving an event in northern Iowa. The Iowa State Patrol confirmed that the SUV hit the protester, who was among about two dozen Black Lives Matter protesters who had traveled 90 miles from Des Moines to Ackley.

Members of the group weren’t allowed into the Tuesday event at Family Traditions Meat, a small processor, so they gathered at the end of a driveway to block the governor’s car. Jaylen Cavil told the Des Moines Register that he wasn’t hurt but that he was shocked the governor’s SUV hit him. Cavil says, “I 100% think they intentionally hit me.”

A spokesman for the Iowa State Patrol told The Des Moines Register preliminary reports from the scene indicate Cavil intentionally stepped in front the moving vehicle and was not hurt. The protesters have been urging Reynolds to sign an executive order by July 4th that would automatically restore voting rights to released felons.

Iowa governors, by law, are not to drive themselves and state troopers are assigned to the task. The law was passed after Governor Dan Beardsley died when the car he was driving crashed into a truck in 1954.