Thursday, January 6, 2022

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Some Republican state lawmakers are considering an anti-vaccine mandate bill. If passed, the bill would stop businesses from asking about or keeping medical records, including the vaccination status of their employees. The bill would also make it illegal for Iowa businesses to deny goods and services, provide incentives or disincentives or make hiring or firing decisions based on vaccination status.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Three Iowa Senate Democrats are proposing a constitutional amendment to the state’s marijuana laws. They want recreational marijuana to be regulated similar to the way alcohol is in the state. They say that the state is missing out on jobs and revenue that recreational marijuana could provide.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Healthcare providers at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics are seeing twice as many positive Covid cases this week than the number they saw around Christmas time. They continue to urge people to get vaccinated, boosted and wear masks. They expect the Omicron surge to peak in late January or early February.

LAS VEGAS, NV (IRN) – The future of farming is on display and will be ready to drive through the fields later this year. John Deere revealed during the CES 2022 tech trade show that their fully autonomous tractors are ready for large-scale production. Farmers just have to take the tractor to the field and hit start. The cameras and a neural network of algorithms allow the tractor to avoid obstacles and stay in its geofence. The system will also gather data about the soil as it works to improve performance. Farmers can monitor the machine from their phones.