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Local News

Iowa House passes bill to raise premium tax on HMOs to fill Medicaid shortfall

By:Robin Opsahl (Iowa Capital Dispatch) The Iowa House passed a bill Thursday retroactively bumping the premium tax rate for health maintenance organizations to make up for a Medicaid budget shortfall — a move Democrats and insurers said would...Read More

Louisa County man arrested after allegedly driving into pole inside downtown Iowa City parking ramp

Lang 3/20/26 Iowa City Police have arrested a Louisa County man they say crashed his car into a pole inside a downtown parking ramp. An officer reports seeing a 2017 Chrysler 300 driving southbound on Clinton Street...Read More

Johnson County supervisors vote down funding for Clear Creek Amana school resource officer

Lang 3/20/26 The Johnson County Board of Supervisors has voted 4-1 against funding a school resource officer for the Clear Creek Amana School District. The officer would have been a full-time deputy placed in the Clear Creek...Read More

Iowa City Police Department conducts tobacco compliance rechecks

Lang 3/20/26 The Iowa City Police Department conducted tobacco sales law compliance checks on Friday, March 13, 2026, at the 55 businesses in Iowa City open for business and licensed to sell tobacco, alternative nicotine, or vapor...Read More

Suspect accused of running over 5 people near Iowa City homeless camp enters guilty pleas

Lang 3/19/26 A mobile home resident accused of intentionally striking five people with his car near an Iowa City homeless camp has entered guilty pleas. According to arrest reports, 29-year-old Roman Aguilar Ventura of the Hilltop manufactured...Read More

Iowa fuel prices continue to rise amid Iran conflict

Lang 3/19/26 Fuel prices continue to rise in Iowa amid the current conflict in Iran and the ensuing threat to ships in the Strait of Hormuz. The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship reports the average...Read More

Hope House resident back in custody after allegedly absconding for two weeks

Lang 3/19/26 A Hope House resident is back in custody after allegedly absconding from the Coralville facility two weeks ago. 21-year-old Mekhi Wright was booked into the Johnson County Jail just after 2:00 Thursday morning. The Iowa...Read More

Iowa City assisted living center fined $6,000 for “serious medication error” that hospitalized resident

By: Clark Kauffman (Iowa Capital Dispatch) An assisted living center for people with dementia has been fined $6,000 for a serious medication error that resulted in a resident’s hospitalization. State inspectors allege that on Dec. 23, 2025, a...Read More

Extreme weather pushes Tiffin garbage pickup to Friday

Tiffin Garbage and Recycling will occur on Friday, March 20th this week....Read More

Bill to establish state psilocybin program approved by Senate subcommittee

By:Robin Opsahl (Iowa Capital Dispatch) An Iowa Senate subcommittee advanced a bill Wednesday that would allow for the legal, medical use of psilocybin, the psychoactive compound in “magic mushrooms,” in state-approved psychiatric treatment programs. House File 978 was...Read More

Wells denies Heartlanders in 4-0 loss to Kansas City

Iowa Heartlanders news release Coralville, Iowa — Dylan Wells made 25 saves and Colby MacArthur scored twice in his pro debut to push the Kansas City Mavericks past the Iowa Heartlanders, 4-0, Wednesday at Xtream Arena. MacArthur notched...Read More

Iowa HHS receives 80th baby through Safe Haven program

Lang 3/18/26 The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services reports receiving its 80th baby through the state’s over two-decade-old Safe Haven law. A baby girl born March 6th is now in the care and custody of...Read More

State auditor Rob Sand criticizes rising payments to MCOs despite fewer Iowans being enrolled in Medicaid

Lang 3/18/26 State Auditor Rob Sand on Wednesday released information showing Iowa’s Managed Care Organizations (MCOs) are on track to receive a nearly 90% increase in funding to manage Iowa’s Medicaid program in FY26. That’s despite approximately...Read More

National News

Nomination of Sen. Markwayne Mullin as Sec’y of Homeland Security advances after narrow committee vote

Sen. Markwayne Mullin is one step nearer to becoming the next head of the Department of Homeland Security after the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee narrowly approved his nomination on Thursday. The panel voted 8–7...Read More

Missing University of Alabama student on spring break in Barcelona is found dead

Update: Authorities announced on Thursday that University of Alabama student James “Jimmy” Gracey, 20, who was reported missing in Barcelona, Spain while on spring break, has been found dead. A representative from the Barcelona police said in...Read More

Trump Administration temporarily lifts shipping rules to tackle rising fuel costs

The Trump Administration has approved a 60-day suspension of the Jones Act, aiming to ease pressure on fuel prices and stabilize supply chains disrupted by escalating tensions involving Iran. The century-old law typically requires that goods transported...Read More