Winners

The first statewide survey, sponsored by groups including Iowa Farm Bureau, Partnership for Better Health and Iowa Health System, to examine the health perceptions of Iowans reveals that 85 percent of Iowans feel good about their health, and 93 percent agree that travel time to see a physician is “reasonable.” Those are among the highlights of the overall positive outlook of Iowans, including the fact that nine out of 10 Iowans have health insurance and 94 percent of Iowans have a regular place they visit for health care. But there is always room for improvement as the survey shows that only one in four Iowans say they comply with what their primary care provider recommends all the time, and the majority of Iowans have, at one time, chosen to manage their health care costs by not seeing a doctor when they were sick, not filling prescriptions or not scheduling follow-up medical tests.

Des Moines Area Community College broke ground on a new $14 million health sciences facility to be built on its Ankeny campus. As housing and tuition costs continue to rise at the state’s three universities, and more students turn to community college, it’s nice to see DMACC offer an affordable education for future doctors. The new facility will increase DMACC’s health science enrollment by 30 percent and train medical students as Iowa faces a severe shortage of health care professionals.

More than 1,000 people turned out for the Central Iowa 2007 Light The Night Walk held Sept. 22, raising more than $127,000 to support blood cancer research and patient services. We’re sure the 823,349 people who live with leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma are grateful.

Those who failed to file for a return on income taxes, or who made a mistake on their return, or who owe back taxes are in luck. Chances are you qualify for Iowa Tax Amnesty — where taxpayers pay the tax and half of the interest they owe while the penalty and remaining interest are forgiven. The last time the state offered a Tax Amnesty was the fall of 1986. But don’t hesitate, the offer expires Oct. 31.

Two Des Moines high school students who attended Central Academy — Amelia Browning, a graduate of Roosevelt High School who now attends the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Thinh Luong, a graduate of East High School who now attends Iowa State University — are the top Advanced Placement scholars in the state according to the College Board. Since 1991, 29 of the state’s 34 AP Scholar Awards winners have attended Central Academy.

Losers

RAGBRAI participants won’t be riding through Crawford County anytime soon — unless state lawmakers pass a law protecting counties from liability — after Crawford County Supervisors last week banned The Des Moines Register’s annual bicycle ride. County officials say their roads are not designed for bicycle travel after they paid a $350,000 settlement to Betty Jo Ulrich of Davenport who sued the county after the death of her husband, Kirk, in 2004. Ulrich died from injuries sustained after he was thrown from his bicycle after hitting a crack on a county road. County officials agreed to the settlement, but did not admit negligence. The Register and Crawford County are both losers in this scenario: the county for taking the wrong steps, as it should fix the roads, not ban bikes [A smart lawyer might question whether what they did is constitutional since people have a First Amendment right of assembly.]; and The Register for once again over-hyping a story about its own commercial venture — and that’s what RAGBRAI has become — which it does regularly. Page one, above the fold? When we’re at war, when every candidate is in Iowa, when there are huge issues like health care for kids and the deteriorating economy? Give us a break. The only thing more ridiculous would be Register editorials encouraging lawmakers to pass legislation to protect counties from liability so that other Iowa counties won’t follow suit and ban their ride.

A few bad apples are giving Lincoln High School students a bad reputation with the school’s neighborhood residents as police and school officials have pledged to step up patrols in response to complaints of student misconduct. Residents who live near Lincoln say they have seen students trespass, vandalize private property, use drugs, park illegally, smoke cigarettes, litter, jaywalk and have sex while off school grounds. Some also complained students have urinated and defecated on their properties.

The good news is that the number of student suspensions in Des Moines Public Schools declined nearly 25 percent over the last five years (8,750 suspensions during the 2006-07 school year compared to 11,604 in 2002-03), according to a report by the school district, while the average daily attendance of students slightly increased from last year. The bad news is if you’re a black student, chances are greater you served a suspension when your white friend didn’t, as the report found that out of 62 schools, 19 had a disproportionately high number of suspensions of African-American students. CV

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