Iowa's Radio News Network
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Popular Celtic band to make one stop in the Hawkeye State
St. Patrick’s Day is coming a month early, as what’s considered the most popular Irish music band ever to emerge in the United States will play one show in Iowa in a few weeks. The band’s name, Solas, come from an Irish word for light. Clark Williams, president of the Des Moines-based Celtic Music Association, [...]
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Iowa Hospital Association report shows a growing health care industry
An annual report released this week shows Iowa’s 118 community hospitals employ more than 136,000 people and add nearly $6.2 billion to the state’s economy. Scott McIntyre, spokesman for the Iowa Hospital Association (IHA), says the health care industry in Iowa is growing – in part – because of the state’s aging population. “We have [...]
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Rhode Island company expands biofuels plant in Shenandoah
A Rhode Island-based biofuels company broke ground this week on an expansion of its operation at a southwest Iowa plant. BioProcess Algae opened a demonstration plant in 2009 at the Green Plains Energy ethanol plant in Shenandoah. The facility takes the waste products left over from the ethanol plant, and uses them to grow algae. [...]
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Iowa GOP co-chair ponders job of party leader
The co-chairman of the Republican Party of Iowa is debating whether wants to become party chairman. Iowa GOP chairman Matt Strawn’s recently announced resignation takes effect Friday, February 10th. According to party rules, current co-chair Bill Schickel of Mason City will automatically become the interim chair. “It’s something I’m certainly considering and I’ll be making [...]
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Big winter storm heading in from the west
A major winter storm is knocking on Iowa’s door. Twenty counties in central and western Iowa are under a Winter Storm Warning late tonight through tomorrow night. The watch area includes the cities of Council Bluffs, Denison, Atlantic, Creston, Ames and Des Moines. National Weather Service meteorologist Frank Boksa says the storm will start with rain and [...]
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Lottery games now featured on two state liquor trucks
The state agency that handles liquor sales has teamed up with the Iowa Lottery to create a couple of rolling lottery advertisements. The Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division (ABD) has used space on the sides of its delivery trucks for several years to promote tourism through the “Iowa Great Places” program. A.B.D. spokesperson, Tonya Dusold, says [...]
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Heart Association says heart disease drops to #2 killer of men and women
We see plenty of red Valentine’s Day hearts during February, but Iowans are also encouraged to think about their real heart beating in their chests. This is National Heart Month and Alexson Callahan, with the American Heart Association of Central Iowa, says heart health is vital for all of us. “Nationwide, heart disease is the [...]
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Branstad says elected officials should “lead by example” on health insurance costs
Governor Terry Branstad says he along with other statewide elected officials and all 150 members of the legislature should start paying for 20 percent of the health care coverage state taxpayers now provide them. “If you look at most private sector (companies), employees pay at least 20 percent,” Branstad says. “Some pay more than that [...]
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Iowa City woman charged with not reporting alleged child abuse
The woman who runs the Broadway Neighborhood Center in Iowa City is facing charges for not reporting an allegation of child abuse. Iowa City Police Sergeant Denise Brotherton says it may be the first time in state history that a person known as a mandatory reporter was arrested for not reporting a possible crime. “Protect [...]
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Church affiliated hospitals upset over healthcare decision, Harkin responds (audio)
A decision by the Obama Administration that forces church affiliated employers to cover birth control in their healthcare plans has outraged religious organizations across the country. The ruling means church affiliated hospitals such as Sioux City’s Mercy Medical Center would be force to pay for insurance that covers contraceptives and sterilization. Mercy spokesman, Jim Wharton, [...]
