Iowa
Gov. Kim Reynolds signs Iowa law restricting mail-order abortion pills
Iowans will need to see a doctor in person for abortion medication starting July 1.
Watch as Gov. Reynolds signs charter school funding bill into law
Gov. Kim Reynolds speaks during a bill signing for HF 2754, a charter school funding bill, on May 12, 2026, at Des Moines Prep.
Iowans will need to see a doctor in person to receive abortion medication under a new law Gov. Kim Reynolds has signed.
The Tuesday, May 19, signing came as Republican-led states across the country aim to restrict access to abortion pills, usage of which has increased since the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade.
A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling temporarily preserved access to mail-order prescriptions after Louisiana challenged the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s expanded access. But the medication’s future remains uncertain as the legal battle plays out.
The bill, House File 2788, will require Iowans seeking abortion medication, including the drugs mifepristone and misoprostol, to have an in-person appointment with a doctor. They will be informed of specific health and safety information about the pill and screened for signs of coercion or abuse.
Republican lawmakers and anti-abortion advocacy groups championed the law, arguing it will crack down on the flow of pills into Iowa from groups and physicians in other states and create opportunities to detect domestic violence.
“We are providing a private clinical sanctuary where an expert can look them in the eye and ask, ‘Are you safe?’ That opportunity for intervention is lost the moment that we move this process to a computer screen, a phone or a mailbox,” Iowa state Rep. Devon Wood, R-New Market, said during debate on the bill May 14.
Maggie DeWitte, director of anti-abortion advocacy group Pulse Life Advocates, said the legislation will restore prior “safeguards.”
“This bill is a step in the right direction to protect Iowa women from this dangerous drug,” DeWitte said in a statement.
Decades of studies have shown that less than 1% of medication abortions result in serious complications such as severe bleeding or infection.
Reproductive rights advocates have criticized the legislation, contending it will limit access to the medication, which they say many Iowans have acquired through means including telehealth since Iowa implemented laws restricting abortion in recent years.
“All this bill does is it takes away power from the people, the people who are knowledgeable about giving care to those people who need it,” state Rep. Megan Srinivas, a physician and Des Moines Democrat, said during floor debate. “This doesn’t touch the problem of black-market abortions. It creates a problem of creating a void in care for so many Iowans.”
Medication abortion has increased since Iowa Republicans passed a law restricting abortions at roughly six weeks after conception. They comprised 63% of all abortions in the country in 2023, compared with 53% in 2020, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a nonprofit that supports abortion rights.
Planned Parenthood North Central States President and CEO Ruth Richardson said abortion pills will continue to be available at the organization’s Iowa health centers “within legal guidelines.”
“Medication abortion has been trusted by providers and patients for more than 25 years. It is safe and effective care. Make no mistake: both nationwide and state attacks on abortion care do nothing to protect patients,” Richardson said in a statement. “There’s no medically necessary reason to restrict how Iowans can access this common, trusted, and safe method of abortion care.”
The Iowa legislation also clarifies the definition of “abortion” to specify that miscarriages and treatment of ectopic pregnancies do not qualify as abortions under the law. which will go into effect July 1.
Federal lawsuits could limit law’s scope
Out-of-state providers who dispense abortion pills in Iowa without following the legislation’s requirements will face civil liability. Licensed physicians and pharmacists in Iowa would be immune from that penalty and could only be subject to licensing discipline.
But lawsuits at the federal level could either expand or stymie Republican lawmakers’ efforts to restrict abortion medication, as shield laws remain in place protecting health care workers in other states who prescribe mifepristone to out-of-state patients.
Rapid Response Politics Reporter Maya Marchel Hoff can be reached at mmarchelHoff@usatodayco.com. You can find her on X (formerly Twitter) at @mmarchelhoff.
The offers come as Iowa transitions oversight of state websites and data to two private companies.
What to know about Iowa’s IT layoffs as it outsources data management
Iowa is laying off roughly 200 state workers as part of a plan that transfers management of state government data and websites from a state agency.
IT employees laid off as Iowa privatizes management of its government data and websites are receiving job offers from a private company contracting with the state, as promised by Gov. Kim Reynolds.
Cognizant Government Solutions, the New Jersey-based company tasked with taking over daily IT operations for Iowa’s executive branch, sent offer letters to state workers whose jobs are being terminated as a result of the transition, according to the governor’s office and a state employee who is part of the layoffs.
Reynolds, who initially announced the transition to Cognizant and Amazon Web Services on June 9, maintained that the roughly 200 impacted state employees would receive “individualized, competitive job offers” from Cognizant by June 25.
State employees have until July 10 to accept Cognizant’s offers before the two companies begin providing the state services on Aug. 3.
The governor has touted the transition as a continuation of her administration’s initiative to consolidate and centralize the state’s IT services, which her office says will save taxpayers more than $525 million over 10 years
“This isn’t easy. Nobody likes to make decisions like that. It’s hard. We are so fortunate to have just the workforce that we have at the state,” Reynolds said in a June 19 interview on PBS’s Iowa Press. “They are providing the services every single day. But I also have a responsibility to the taxpayers of Iowa and Iowa, and we can’t keep doing things the way we did 40 years ago.
“This is where industry is going. This is where government is going.”
A state employee who was part of the layoffs and who asked to remain anonymous for fear of jeopardizing their employment, said they received an offer June 25 that included less expansive health and retirement benefits compared to state plans and a salary slightly higher than their state earnings.
Amid the layoff announcement, multiple state IT workers faced confusion and fear over their employment status as they waited for clear confirmation on future work, wages or benefits with Cognizant.
During one of many meetings between employees, state and Cognizant, employees were told if they accept the Cognizant offer, their job descriptions will remain the same for one year, according to the laid-off employee.
The companies will adjust job descriptions or let workers pick a different contract, the worker said, but there are no guarantees of employment past the first year.
“We are eager to welcome you to the team! You are joining the Company at an exciting time, and we know your fresh thinking and expertise will help us accomplish great things,” a Cognizant offer letter obtained by the Register states.
The state will pay Cognizant and AWS nearly $420 million over the next decade, $80.4 million of which will go to AWS to shift the state’s data from dozens of data centers and thousands of physical servers to a cloud-based system, according to contracts.
Gov. Kim Reynolds: State data is ‘secure’
As Iowa transfers oversight of government websites and data to Cognizant and AWS, Reynolds insisted the information will remain safeguarded.
“It (state data) absolutely is secure,” Reynolds said on Iowa Press. “There are all kinds of contracts and MOU and things that you have to sign. And even when it came to like the HIPAA data, we’ve got a form that you have to sign that you can’t release any of the information. They (Cognizant and AWS) have absolutely no access to any of that data.”
A data privacy framework for Cognizant to deal with customer data and confidential information is laid out in the contract between the company and the state. Under the agreement, the company must keep state data “secure, and not disclose or use it for any purpose other than providing Services under the Agreement,” the contract states.
The company may only retain state data to perform IT services for Iowa or with prior written approval of the state.
Rapid Response Politics Reporter Maya Marchel Hoff can be reached at mmarchelHoff@usatodayco.com. You can find her on X (formerly Twitter) at @mmarchelhoff.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) – Law enforcement in Johnson County is preparing for hundreds of thousands of visitors this weekend as multiple major events converge on the area simultaneously.
The Savannah Bananas are playing to a sold-out Kinnick Stadium crowd Friday and Saturday. A Big and Rich free concert is scheduled in Coralville Friday night. Downtown Iowa City will host Jazz Fest all weekend.
Residents prepare for the crowds
In University Heights — a small city nestled inside Iowa City — resident Maria Scott said she and her husband moved to the corner of Koser and Sunset eight years ago for the quiet.
“Thought it would be a place to land and raise our family,” Scott said.
During Hawkeye home football games, Scott said, that quiet corner becomes a high-demand parking spot. The family uses their lawn as a parking lot.
“I think we park 35 cars just on this property,” Scott said.
This weekend, the Scott family is preparing for two nights of full capacity on their property.
Police plan for game-day-level crowds
The University Heights Police Department is also preparing. University of Iowa Public Safety posted a message to social media listing the weekend’s events and asking the public to be patient.
University Heights Police Chief Chris Akers said the volume of activity is not typical.
“Is this normal to have this much going on during a holiday weekend? Absolutely not,” Akers said.
Akers said officers will assist with traffic and crowd control and will also work inside the stadium. He said the department plans to treat the weekend like a game day, with tens of thousands of people in the area over two days.
“When you come in to Iowa City, you come in to Coralville, you come in to University Heights, you come to the University of Iowa — be patient,” Akers said. “Realize that after that game, the stadium holds about 70,000 people and everybody wants to get home.”
Scott said community participation helps make weekends like this work.
“Our kids love it,” Scott said. “They always ask, ‘When do the tailgaters come back?’”
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
IOWA CITY, Iowa — An Iowa City man is facing a felony theft charge after police say he was involved in an armed robbery in downtown Iowa City earlier this year.
According to the criminal complaint, 20-year-old Boubacar Dioubate is charged with second-degree theft.
Police say the robbery happened around 12:49 a.m. on April 18 in the 100 block of South Clinton Street.
Court documents allege the victim was approached by three suspects who threatened to stab and shoot him. Investigators say one of the suspects held a knife while demanding the victim’s cellphone.
The victim reported that his $500 cellphone, a $1,000 necklace and $200 in cash were stolen, for a total value of about $1,700.
According to the complaint, security cameras captured the incident. Investigators say the footage shows Dioubate assaulting the victim, repeatedly grabbing the victim’s phone and taking the victim’s necklace.
Police also say the stolen cellphone was tracked to Dioubate’s Iowa City address a few hours after the robbery.
Dioubate was arrested, and the charge was filed in Johnson County District Court. The case remains pending.
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