Good morning from Iowa Capital Dispatch.
“Right now we’re all in the dark, and the secrecy is a big part of the problem.” -- Shaina Aber, executive director of the Acacia Center for Justice, which previously held the federal contract for legal services for unaccompanied immigrant youth. The Trump administration had not entered a new contract as of Monday.
Iowa's nursing homes are now being inspected on average every 12 months, bringing the state into compliance with federal requirements, state Auditor Rob Sand said. (Photo by Jose Miguel Sanchez/Getty Images)
An audit released Monday shows the state has made “substantial improvements” in efforts to inspect nursing homes and now meets federal requirements, state Auditor Rob Sand said.
In 2024, the state auditor’s office found certified nursing homes in Iowa were inspected by the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing on average every 17.1 months — four months beyond the federal mandate requiring homes to be inspected on a 12.9 month average.
Old Cabin Retreat, which is alleged to have operated as an unlicensed hospital, in Centerville, Iowa, and its owner, Eddie Gingerich. (Main photo and inset photo courtesy of Appanoose County)
Six years after it first opened, a care facility in rural Iowa that has allegedly been operating without the required licensure has been temporarily shut down by a court order.
District Court Judge Crystal S. Cronk issued a temporary injunction last week barring the owners and affiliates of Centerville’s Old Cabin Retreat from continuing to engage in the unlicensed practice of medicine, dentistry and dietetics, ruling that they “are a danger to the public.”
July ended with hot temperatures and record high dew point temperatures, according to a weekly weather report from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.
Two Iowa community colleges will use grant funding from the state to expand their career training capabilities for high school students.
The Iowa Pork Producers Association plans to have a “1776 Pork Chop Salute” at the Iowa State Fair this summer to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the United States.
Leaders of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee announced a bipartisan deal over the weekend that would keep the federal government funded through Dec. 11 and pause the Trump administration’s effort to add controversial new criteria for federal grants.
States do not have time before November’s midterm elections to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive order mandating overhauls of their mail-in-voting systems, two dozen Democratic state officials told the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s nomination to be attorney general appeared on track Monday after he submitted a written assurance to Senate Judiciary Committee lawmakers that the administration’s nearly $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund that could potentially pay pardoned violent Jan. 6 defendants is dead.
More than 20,000 unaccompanied immigrant children Monday lost their legal representation because the Trump administration has not entered into a new agreement to take over their legal services after it let a longstanding contract with a nonprofit expire.
Many states have made marked progress over the past two years in extending crucial care and benefits to children, workers and aging adults. But they will be hard-pressed to fill the void left by impending federal cuts to social services, according to a new analysis, Stateline reports.
Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, on Sunday said Rep. Max Miller, also of Ohio and his former son-in-law, is not fit to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives as he faces allegations of domestic abuse from his ex-wife, who is Moreno’s daughter.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Thanks for reading Daily Dispatch. Did you know our weekend digest is also free? Sign up here. And if you enjoyed today’s edition, please forward to a friend. Increasing our readership helps us cover more news.