(Radio Iowa) – A state agency has notified Iowa nursing homes that the State Hygienic Lab doesn’t have the capacity to process all the Covid tests identified in new federal guidelines. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid now recommends routine testing of ALL nursing home staff, along with volunteers and contractors. Pat Garrett, a spokesman for Governor Reynolds, says the state will continue to test in nursing homes when staff or residents show symptoms or have been exposed to positive cases, but the new federal guidelines could generate more than 130-thousand additional tests PER WEEK.

State Representative Timi Brown-Powers, a Democrat from Waterloo who’s a nurse, says the state already should have used federal pandemic relief money to pay for expanded testing in nursing homes. “I prefer to play offense than defense,” she says. “I took this as, ‘We’re not going to put the effort in to make sure that we’re being proactive. We’re just going to wait until we have a problem.'”

Brown-Powers says an Iowa Department of Public Health LETTER appears to tell nursing homes they can cite the lack of state testing capacity as the reason more routine Covid screenings aren’t being done. “What they’re being told is: ‘We’re not going to do it. We know the feds are saying we should be doing it, so just document whatever you can and that will be good enough,'” Brown-Powers says.

The governor’s spokesman says the federal government plans to send supplies and processing equipment for RAPID Covid tests and state officials will notify nursing homes when those units are available. The state website lists outbreaks at 39 Iowa nursing homes today (Thursday), an increase from a week ago when there were 32.  “We’re headed in the wrong direction, once again,” Brown-Powers says.

The state’s coronavirus website indicates 658 Iowa nursing home residents have died of Covid since the pandemic began. That’s nearly 53 percent of all the Covid deaths in Iowa.

(Radio Iowa) – As many Iowa schools report a growing number of COVID-19 cases, students and teachers should be prepared to quarantine for a full 14 days if they come into close contact with someone carrying the virus. Nola Aigner Davis, spokeswoman for the Polk County Health Department, says even people who test negative for coronavirus after being exposed must quarantine for the full two weeks.

Aigner Davis says, “So, let’s say you got that negative test on Day Three, Day Four, you still have to wait that full 14 days because we’ve seen people develop symptoms on Day 14.” A person is considered in a “close contact” if they’ve spent 15 minutes within six feet of someone who can transmit the virus. She says the duration of the quarantine is very important.

“You need to stay at home for those full 14 days,” she says. “You can even develop symptoms on Day 14, so that is why we make sure people are in quarantine for 14 days.” Aigner Davis says families should be extra cautious this school year and call their doctor — and their school — if their child feels sick.

(reporting By Grant Gerlock, Iowa Public Radio)

CRESTON, Iowa – Sept. 17, 2020 – The Iowa Department of Transportation’s Creston construction office report workers have completed a bridge replacement project on Iowa 92 east of Greenfield, and will be reopening the roadway to traffic at 4 p.m. Friday, Sept. 18th. Murphy Heavy Contracting is the prime contractor for this project.

Atlantic, IA —Officials with the Cass County Health System (CCHS) report the Test Iowa site in Atlantic is expanding hours and moving to a new location on Monday, September 21st. The drive-thru testing site will be open Monday through Friday from 9 am to 1 pm. The new location will be in the curved driveway off 10th street (the original hospital entrance). The previous Test Iowa location, behind 1500 East 10th street, will be used for drive-thru flu shot appointments.

CCHS Chief Clinic Administrator Tammy Bireline says  “We wanted to be able to better serve our community with increased COVID-19 testing, especially for parents and children during the school year. By increasing our community’s access to Test Iowa, we hope that this helps mitigate the spread and returns students to school as soon as possible.”

Individuals who wish to get tested at the Test Iowa site must follow these steps:

• Complete the online assessment at testiowa.com.
• Select Atlantic (CCHS) as your testing site.
• Receive a QR code.
• Schedule the test appointment by calling 712-250-8297.

You will receive an email from Test Iowa with a link to your test results as soon as they are ready; typically, within 72 hours. The information will be sent to the email address you provided when answering the survey. Clinic sites are partnerships between the State of Iowa and local health care providers to increase access to testing in their communities. Clinics operate and staff the test sites. The state provides testing supplies and processes the samples through the State Hygienic Lab.

Locations and hours of operation for all test sites can be found at testiowa.com or coronavirus.iowa.gov. Information about testing at the Atlantic site can be found at casshealth.org/testiowa.

Officials with the Empowering Adair County Foundation (EACF) report grant funds totaling $84,457.84 for are available for application, with the deadline set for October 15, 2020.  EACF says the grant amount is down 17% from last year’s funding amount, due to Iowa’s casinos shutting down as the result of Covid-19.

Less gambling receipts impacts the amount distributed to counties in Iowa without gaming operations. EACF will accept grant applications not to exceed $10,000. However, for the first time, EACF has created a new simple, one-page application form for grant asks not exceeding $3,000. The original long application forms for larger grant requests, along with the new one-page application forms can be found on the Adair County ISU Extension’s website https://www.extension.iastate.edu/adair (scroll down the home page to find EACF information and links for forms).

Due to the decrease in granting funds, the EACF Committee may not be able to grant total amounts requested. Grant applications are scored and reviewed on the following criteria:

• Completeness of Application
• Benefit to Adair County Residents
• Support of Entrepreneurial Activity, Community and Leadership Development
• and Identification and Addressing of Community Needs.

Once the applications are scored, the Committee’s funding recommendations are sent to the Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines (EACF’s affiliate) for final approval of grant disbursements. There is one annual grant cycle with an October 15th application deadline. For more information, visit the website or contact Deena Wells, Adair County Extension at 641-743-8412 or email dwells@iastate.edu.

**********

EACF was formed in 2005 to coordinate and provide philanthropic support for community betterment and to enhance the quality of life for communities in Adair County. The Foundation is governed by a 9-member board representing all areas of Adair County. EACF has funded $1,410,487.92 in projects and programs in Adair County in the past 14 years.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new monthly survey of bankers shows the economy making some improvements but remaining weak in rural parts of 10 Plains and Western states. The Rural Mainstreet Survey’s overall index remained negative at 46.9 in September, even though it improved from August’s 44.7 and marked continued improvement since March, when the index bottomed out at 35.5 as the coronavirus pandemic emerged. Any score below 50 suggests a shrinking economy, while a score above 50 suggests a growing economy.

Bankers from Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming were surveyed.