More uninsured Iowans means more medical debt, more crowded rural ERs, more families paying healthcare costs on credit cards.
The government shutdown is holding up food assistance. Health care subsidies threaten to make the Affordable Care Act unaffordable for many Iowans. State Senate hopeful Renee Hardman of West Des Moines says she is running to protect the supports many Iowans depend on.
Hardman is running in a Dec. 30 special election for Iowa Senate District 16, a seat left vacant following the death of Sen. Claire Celsi.
Iowa's DOGE task force recommended changes to the public employee pension system.
Renee Hardman of West Des Moines is a Democrat running in the December special election to fill a state Senate seat. The vacancy was left following the death of Democrat state Sen. Claire Celsi. The special election is December 30.
If democracy is really backsliding, what takes its place? In this week's Civics 101 series, written by COURIER Newsroom's Ryan Pitkin and voiced by Iowa Starting Line's Amie Rivers, we explore the different flavors of oligarchy.
It's no secret that many industries lean on undocumented workers to meet their needs. In an era of mass deportations, wage theft is still occurring and some employers are counting on workers being too scared to come forward.
If the government shutdown continues through Nov. 1, millions of Americans will lose SNAP benefits and access to affordable health care.
November 1st marks the start of ACA open enrollment — and this year, it's one of the most unaffordable and uncertain periods we've seen. Republicans refuse to come to the table and extend subsidies that have made health care more affordable for 140,000 Iowans.
On Cornhole Champions, host Zachary Oren Smith sat down with Chase Seibert and Liz Fleming to talk about how this is part of a bigger story of taking away resources form normal people.
Cornhole Champions is a weekly podcast powered by Iowa Starting Line with music by Avery Mossman and show art by Desirée Tapia. We are a proud member of the Iowa Writers Collaborative.
*SHOW RUNDOWN:*
0:00 – ACA open enrollment starts November 1st: what you need to know
1:00 – Chase and Liz on being self-employed and relying on the ACA
3:00 – Why the ACA is a Band-Aid solution (but losing it makes things worse)
4:00 – Amber Gustafson's story: paying out of pocket before the ACA
6:00 – Republicans shut down the government over healthcare subsidies
7:30 – Premiums are jumping 114% when subsidies expire
9:00 – The false choice: "illegal alien healthcare" vs feeding kids
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Bailouts aren't a solution for anyone but the biggest corporate agriculture operations. Farmers keep saying they want markets, not bailouts.
Iowa's GDP dropped 6.1% in Q1 2025—worse than almost every state. Farmers lost their biggest customer. John Deere laid off hundreds. Meatpacking plants can't find workers.
These are Iowa jobs, Iowa families, Iowa businesses.
We broke down what's actually happening—and why it matters heading into 2026.
