Hull Dentist Fined For Allowing Hygienist To Administer Anesthetic With Lapsed Permit
(Hull) — A Hull dentist has been cited for allowing an employee to administer anesthetic with a lapsed permit. A release from the Iowa Dental Board says that Dr. Justin Hurst was fined $500 in a civil penalty after he allowed a dental hygientist whose local anesthesia permit had expired on November 1, of 2009, to continue administering local anesthetic until October 26, of 2011. Failure to renew a local anesthesia permit within 60 deays of its expiration causes the permit to lapse and become invalid, prohibiting the administration of local anesthesia. Hurst has agreed to pay the fine by November 29th.
State Health Official Suggest Getting Flu Shot
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa officials are reminding residents to take their yearly seasonal influenza vaccine.
The state Department of Public Health says people over 6 months old should get the vaccine. The State Hygienic Laboratory says the flu is circulating in Iowa.
Three cases of seasonal influenza have been identified in eastern and central Iowa in the last two months. None of the individuals were hospitalized, but they had a strain that can cause more serious illness.
Health officials urge people to cover their coughs and sneezes and to clean their hands frequently to help prevent the spread of the flu. The respiratory illness has symptoms that may include fever, headache, tiredness, cough, sore throat, nasal congestion and body aches.
Phoenix-based Telemarketing Company Ordered Not To Contact Iowans
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A Polk County judge has ordered a Phoenix-based telemarketing company to stop contacting Iowa residents with misleading information.
The Attorney General’s Office announced Friday that American Handicapped & Disadvantaged Workers Inc. was ordered to stop telephone sales with pitches focused on helping disabled workers.
The company marketed light bulbs, trash bags and other household items. A consumer fraud lawsuit filed in September by Attorney General Tom Miller said the company’s callers claimed to be disabled and mislead Iowa residents, including many older individuals.
The order covers both telemarketing calls and charitable solicitations. The company, which denies wrongdoing by agreeing to the ban, has also been ordered to pay $10,000 to help refund some consumers.
Gold Star Military Museum To Close
JOHNSTON, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Gold Star Military Museum at Camp Dodge in Johnston will temporarily close due to the federal government shutdown.
The Iowa National Guard announced Friday the museum would be open Saturday but would close beginning Sunday.
Although museum workers are employed by the state, some of the positions receive federal funding.
The museum will remain closed until the federal shutdown ends.
The Iowa Gold Star Military Museum was established in 1985 and is the only federally recognized repository for military artifacts in Iowa.
Human Skeletal Remains Found In Council Bluffs Ditch
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) – Authorities say they have found skeletal human remains in a drainage ditch in Council Bluffs.
Officers found the remains Friday morning just south of the riverfront exit near Interstate 480 in Council Bluffs.
The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation says the remains were of an adult.
Police Sgt. Dave Dawson says officers were following up on a 2-year-old missing person report from Omaha police when they found the remains.
The missing person was last seen in a chase with officers under the freeway bridge.
Investigators sent the remains to Ankeny for identification and were excavating the area for more evidence.
Safe Haven Helps 17 Babies
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa officials say a law that allows a parent to give up custody of a newborn has been used 17 times since it was enacted more than a decade ago.
The state Department of Human Services says the latest safe haven case involves a girl born at a home on Oct. 5. The newborn’s mother sought medical attention and requested the child be declared a safe haven baby.
Iowa’s safe haven law allows a parent to give up custody of a baby that’s 14 days old or less with no questions asked. The law is in response to a 2001 case involving a newborn found dead in a field.
All safe haven babies in Iowa have been adopted. The latest newborn girl has been placed with a foster family.
Iowa State University To Establish Midwest Transportation Center
AMES, Iowa (AP) – The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded more than $5 million to Iowa State University to establish a Midwest Transportation Center.
Iowa State on Friday announced the grants of $2.59 million for each of the next two years to support the center, which will use data to research a variety of transportation-related issues.
Shauna Hallmark, the leader of the grant, says topics include transportation infrastructure, traffic safety and project construction.
The center will include researchers and students from six universities. Those are Iowa State, Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., Harris-Stowe State University in St. Louis, the University of Missouri-Columbia, the University of Missouri-St. Louis and Wichita State University in Kansas.
Researchers will work with their state transportation departments and other agencies to identify projects that merit study.
