Stories

Four additional Iowa influenza-related H1N1 deaths are being reported today by the Iowa Department of Public Health, and one of the new fatalities is not attributable to risk factors associated with an additional medical condition.
The latest victims are identified as adults in Dubuque, Polk, Mills and Monona counties. To date, there have been 11 confirmed [...]

The steady decline in rural health care access can take a toll on patients’ health, but it can also impact the economic well-being of rural communities.

While members of Congress work to reauthorize the Ryan White CARE Act, some states are scrambling to fulfill their role under portions of the existing program as a pharmaceutical provider of last resort. Although it isn’t the first time states have had to institute waiting lists for participation in the program, this does mark the first time such waiting lists have been instituted without a clear path to additional funding to provide the needed funds.

For many Iowa veterans, the war-front follows them home, where they have to battle for benefits already promised to them by the government through the Iowa Veterans Trust Fund (VTF). The annual battle came to an end last week when the Iowa Lottery introduced the first of four games, Stars & Stripes, that will directly benefit the fund.

The Iowa Department of Public Health today released sweeping smoking ban draft rules that more clearly define the boundaries of the recently passed statewide indoor snuff out and outline enforcement.

The 10th annual HIV/AIDS Conference next week in Des Moines will emphasize care, prevention and public awareness.

“Sometimes people think it’s not going to happen to me because I live in Iowa,” said Patricia Young, HIV/AIDS/Hepatitis program coordinator with the Iowa Department of Public Health. “Sometimes until you know somebody who is living with HIV, it’s [...]

Gambling is taking a severe toll on Iowans’ lives — playing a part in bankruptcies, foreclosures and suicides.

With 17 licensed casinos across the state, almost 7 million Iowans gamble every year — and thousands of them report problems.

In February, the most recent data available, 695 people called the the state’s gambling hot line, I-800-Bets-Off [...]

Thousands of Iowans this month have flooded the state’s smoking cessation hot line with calls since it began offering free nicotine patches and gum, state health officials said.

The Iowa Department of Public Health began offering the nicotine patches and gum through the state’s “Quitline” at 1-800-QUIT-NOW or 1-800-784-8669. The free, confidential program is for Iowa [...]