Iowa

Iowa bill would require schools, child care facilities to disclose vaccine exemption info to families

Published

11 months ago

January 23, 2025

Iowa bill would require schools, child care facilities to disclose vaccine exemption info to families

Iowa’s K-12 schools and child care facilities would have to disclose information that parents and guardians can exempt their child from vaccines in a set of proposed companion House and Senate bills that passed Wednesday through their respective subcommittees.

Nearly half a dozen Iowa mothers who oppose vaccines packed into Iowa House and Senate subcommittees Wednesday to share personal testimonies advocating for the passage of companion bills Senate File 6 and House File 34.

“That’s all it’s about, is information,” said Lindsay Maher, an Iowa mom who supports vaccine exemptions. “So we need to do a better job of making that information transparent for parents.”

The companion bills would require Iowa’s K-12 schools and child care facilities to include information about vaccine exemptions in any public communication to parents or guardians following recommendations by the Department of Public Health and Human Services.

Families can opt out of school vaccines if immunizing their student “conflicts with a genuine and sincere religious belief,” according to Iowa law. Iowa law says that that belief must be religious, but families don’t have to specify a religion or obtain a religious waiver.

A medical exemption signed by a physician who deems a vaccine would be harmful to a child is also an option for families in Iowa.

Elementary and secondary schools and child care facilities would have to publish vaccine exemption information on their websites and in registration documents. The legislation also requires the Iowa Board of Education to adopt a rule to require all K-12 school districts and schools to provide information regarding the exemptions to a parent or guardian.

Iowa community colleges and Iowa Board of Regents universities would also have to adopt a policy to require them to include any communication to students related to immunization exemptions.

Rep. Samantha Fett, R-Carlisle, who co-sponsored the House bill, told the Register the bill is an example of informed consent.

“It’s important that parents have the options in front of them if they’re required to make a choice, especially in the school district that says you have to have these vaccinations, you can simply say you also have the exemption, and then it’s the parent’s choice, it’s the family’s choice,” Fett said.

Maher said excluding information about vaccine exemptions is a medical coercion strategy.

“Schools are not supposed to be practicing medicine, and they aren’t, they’re gathering records, but, in this case, we’re using them to coerce parents into making the medical decisions without informed consent. Please pass this bill,” Maher said.

Rep. Tracy Ehlert, D-Cedar Rapids, who is on the House Health and Human Services subcommittee, said she is undecided about the bill because of a few lingering questions about the logistics of the legislation.

“Although I did choose to vaccinate my own children, I really appreciate the transparency and the informative piece of this bill that I can get behind,” Ehlert said. “I am just concerned about the unfunded mandates and I also was wondering if anyone can answer how it will be funded for child care.”

Sen. Molly Donahue, D-Cedar Rapids, who is on the Senate Health and Human Services subcommittee, also didn’t sign off on the bill because the legislation would be a blanket policy rather than allowing child care facilities and schools to deal with concerns about vaccine exemptions on a case-by-case basis.

“I don’t like legislating for everybody because not everybody is a bad actor,” Donahue said.

Fett said Ehlert and Donahue need to understand that parents just want vaccine exemption information accessible to the public.

“It’s not about taking a side on vaccinations or not vaccinations, but it’s understanding that there’s choices, that those choices are laid out in law, and we just want parents to know what those are and they can make the best decisions,” Fett said.

Sabine Martin covers politics for the Register. She can be reached by email at sabine.martin@gannett.com or by phone at (515) 284-8132. Follow her on X at @sabinefmartin.

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Iowa

Iowa City West sweeps City High in a pair of close contests

Published

11 hours ago

December 20, 2025

Press Room

Iowa City West sweeps City High in a pair of close contests

IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) – Grace Fincham led the West High girls to a second-half comeback in a 60-51 win over City High, giving the Trojans a win on their rival’s home floor.

The Trojans improve to 6-2 with the win. The Little Hawks drop to 6-2.

In the boys’ nightcap, the Little Hawks’ comeback attempt fell short, as the Trojans held on for a 53-51 win.

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Iowa

Iowa football dissects LeVar Woods succession plan

Published

23 hours ago

December 19, 2025

Press Room

Iowa football dissects LeVar Woods succession plan

The loss of LeVar Woods, the Iowa Hawkeyes’ long-time, elite special teams coordinator, cannot be dismissed. The Hawkeyes have consistently been among the nation’s best special teams units, from punting to kicking to owning the return and field position battle.

With LeVar Woods departing Iowa for Big Ten foe, the Michigan State Spartans, the Hawkeyes have a big hole to fill, and head coach Kirk Ferentz spoke to the media this week on what that succession plan may look like.

“Yeah, it’s not a light decision. The trick will be to find the next LeVar Woods. He’s done a fantastic job. He didn’t have the profile necessarily maybe at that point to predict what he was going to do, but he’s done all the work. It’s like a good player; players do the work. LeVar has done a great job immersing himself and learning every aspect and then growing with each and every turn. So I guess I’m describing what we’re looking for, a guy who’s a good coach, who’s eager to take a challenge on, and immerse themselves in that world.

“Special teams is a unique niche, if you will. I’m sure we’ll have good candidates. It’s not pressing right now in my mind. What is pressing is the next two weeks getting ready for the game, and then after that we’ll have eight plus weeks or eight plus months actually to get it right. I don’t plan on waiting until August to fill it, but we’ll figure that out when we get in the new year,” Ferentz said about LeVar Woods.

The past few seasons, Iowa has been elite on special teams with kicker Drew Stevens being incredibly consistent, the punting game flipping fields, and the run of returners consisting of Ihmir Smith-Marsette, Charlie Jones, Cooper DeJean, and Kaden Wetjen.

The Hawkeyes have won more than their fair share of games relying on this unit, and to continue that success, Ferentz needs to hit on this hire.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions. Follow Riley on X: @rileydonald7

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Iowa

Iowa State Cyclones’ Jimmy Rogers Must Retain Impact Wide Receiver

Published

1 day ago

December 19, 2025

Press Room

Iowa State Cyclones’ Jimmy Rogers Must Retain Impact Wide Receiver

With the Jimmy Rogers era starting up for the Iowa State Cyclones, he will be hoping to retain some of the talent for the program after the departure of Matt Campbell.

Since Campbell took the job with the Penn State Nittany Lions, there has been a barrage of recruits leaving the program. That was always to be expected with the coaching change, but the Cyclones’ class went from being one of the best in the history of the program to a bit of a problem.

Fortunately, Rogers is expected to bring some of his recruits over from Washington State as well, and that recently started with Malcolm Watkins committing to Iowa State. With the transfer portal set to open in a couple of weeks, there is undoubtedly going to be a lot of player movement.

For Rogers, there will be a couple of key players that he should be focused on trying to retain. Furthermore, keeping some of the younger talent who might be around for multiple years could also help them sustain success.

Alec Busse of 247Sports recently wrote about some essential players for Jimmy Rogers to try and retain that could help the program long-term. Unsurprisingly, sophomore wide receiver Brett Eskildsen was named.

Eskildsen Could Be an Impact Player for Multiple Years

Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

In 2025, the wide receiver position for Iowa State saw a lot of changeover following the departure of some talented players to the NFL. The position group wouldn’t be considered a strength of the program last year, but there was some young talent that showed promise.

One of the top players for the passing offense was the talented sophomore receiver who ended up finishing with a strong campaign. Overall, Eskildsen totaled 30 receptions, 526 receiving yards, and five receiving touchdowns.

The sophomore led the team in both receiving yards and yards per catch, while finishing third in receptions and second in receiving touchdowns. With it really being his first year playing, it was an outstanding start to his career.

For Rogers, keeping the talented receiver for the next couple of years would be a big boost for the program. Fortunately, there are a couple of factors that could help with that. Recently, his brother signed as a preferred walk-on, and his family also has some connections to the program. Those factors could be key for Rogers to retain him, and it would be a significant boost for the offense if he were able to do so.