Iowa news
Gov. Reynolds announces broadband grant recipients of $100M investment
Today, Governor Reynolds and the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) are proud to announce the recipients of the State of Iowa Broadband Grants Program. Thirty-nine applicants have been awarded a total of $97,500,000 for broadband infrastructure as part of the latest Empower Rural Iowa Broadband Grant Program. OCIO received 178 applications from broadband providers for the Grant Program with requests nearing $300 million. Award announcements can be found online here. Office of the Governor of Iowa
MercyOne expands partnership with Navigate Wellbeing Solutions
Navigate Wellbeing Solutions, a West Des Moines-based employee engagement technology company, announced it has expanded its partnership with MercyOne to enable companies to improve employers’ investments in employee health and well-being. Through this partnership between MercyOne and Navigate, local employers can provide their employees access to resources ranging from wellness screenings and health coaching to connecting key services like finding physicians and mental health providers, the companies said in a press release. Business Record
23 state-of-the-art birthing suites part of $15M addition at Mary Greeley
Mary Greeley Medical Center in Ames has opened a new state-of-the art birthing and neonatal intensive care unit at the hospital that’s designed to keep newborns together with their moms, no matter the level of care needed. The 23 new birthing suites, located on the third floor of the west patient tower, are part of a nearly $15 million renovation project that also includes a new eight-room pediatric unit. Business Record
National news
The hospitals where the ICU occupancy stayed high
Early this month, Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta delayed elective surgeries and procedures. The reason: There were so many Covid-19 patients in the hospital’s intensive care unit that there was just no room for anyone who isn’t seriously ill. While the state of Georgia — and the United States as a whole — have been dealing with another surge of Covid cases since August, data from the Department of Health and Human Services shows that Grady’s ICU has been full for much longer. Every week, for the past 12 months, it has been 100 percent full. Before the pandemic, Jansen estimated it was full 70 percent of the time. NBC News
Ransomware is leading hospital boards to pour more money into cybersecurity
A CISO talks with Healthcare IT News about boards’ changing views of security, how hospitals are adapting to ransomware strikes and how infosec professionals’ priorities are shifting along with the threat landscape. Healthcare IT News
Has the spread of COVID-19 peaked in the US? What future COVID-19 spread could look like
The number of new COVID-19 cases in the US seems to have peaked, with cases in states hit hard by the delta variant earlier edging downward over the last week. It’s the longest sustained decline in cases in nearly three months, giving hope to some leading pandemic forecasters. Some hospitals in areas of the country with low vaccination rates are still in crisis mode, but overall the hospitalization rate in the US has dropped, according to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. NBC News