A Cedar Rapids surgery center has agreed to pay $125,000 to resolve allegations it failed to maintain accurate records and controls and procedures to prevent theft and misuse of pain medications. The civil allegations stem from a criminal case of a former nurse stealing fentanyl from the center.
$17.5 million in federal pandemic relief dollars will fund opioid use prevention and treatment projects after Iowa lawmakers failed to agree on spending from the state's Opioid Settlement Fund.
‘It is vital for those persons with the addiction and for those families that we do better, and we just didn’t do anything. And that’s too bad,’ a legislative Democrat says.
The Linn County Public Health Department is working on a project that will bring seven vending machines stocked with free naloxone and other harm-prevention supplies to public locations in Linn County.
Also in the Capitol Notebook: The Iowa House approved legislation that would increase penalties for fentanyl-related deaths.
Also, Iowa House passes ban on police traffic stop quotas.
The state has $26.8 million in funds from settlements from cases against major opioid manufacturers and retailers, and it’s expected to receive around $144 million over the next several years. Lawmakers’ proposed bills would govern how those funds are spent.
Also in the Capitol Notebook: Democrats ask for investigation into purchase of Iowa fertilizer plant.
“It’s vital that we ensure that every dime of these settlement funds goes to help curb this deadly epidemic,” the Marion representative says.
Request includes aid to Ukraine and Israel as well as border security funding
An Iowa health care nonprofit received a nearly $1 million federal grant for adolescent and young adult behavioral health in an effort to address opioid overdoses.
Iowa will receive more than $1 million from a nationwide settlement with the maker of the opioid addiction treatment drug Suboxone.
For the second time in 10 years, an Iowa nurse accused of stealing patient painkillers has had her license suspended by the state.
Iowa attorneys would get paid more to represent indigent defendants to address a severe shortage that’s led to grueling caseloads.
© 2025 The Gazette | All Rights Reserved.
Daily Newsletters