Insurance

LCS board cuts back early retirement policy (01/26/10)
A revision in the Le Mars Community School District's early retirement policy will be financially beneficial to the district while trimming some benefits to staff as well. It will continue to offer retiring certified staff with a contribution to the individual's medical insurance coverage...

LCS board proposes no teacher salary increase for 2010-11 (12/22/09)
No increase in base salary. No step movement on the salary schedule. No changes in contract language other than date changes. That's the opening proposal put forth by the Le Mars Community Schools board of education negotiating team in response to contract talks with the Le Mars Community Education Association (LCED) for the 2010-11 teachers' contract...

Seasonal influenza vaccine clinics set in Plymouth County (09/17/09)
Floyd Valley Community Health Service will again be providing flu vaccine throughout Plymouth County. This year's seasonal vaccine covers three strains of influenza, A/Brisbane/59/2007 (H1N1)-like, A/Brisbane/10/2007 (H3N2)-like and B/Brisbane/60/2008-like...

Courthouse water repair costs passed onto insurance (07/29/09)
Final costs to repair water damage at the clerk of courts' office on the third floor of the Plymouth County Courthouse are in. Stacey Feldman, auditor, told the Plymouth County Supervisors Tuesday she would submit the $15,770 bill to the county's insurance company, and she expects a check within a few weeks...

A mom with a message: Porterfield visits Washington D.C. (06/16/09)
"I'm not a lobbyist," Barbara Porterfield said. "I'm a mom." Even so, the rural Plymouth County woman just returned from Washington D.C. where she spoke to legislative officials about her family's plight to get affordable health care. Porterfield, a medical transcriptionist, had health coverage through her company until its ownership changed a few years ago...

Health care: Is the system broken and can we fix it? (05/22/09)
Barb Walter, owner of Close to Home, a local shop, said her health care costs are getting out of hand. For self-employed people like Walter and her husband, they have to find and pay for health insurance on their own. "It goes up every couple of months," she said of the price they pay. "And we have a high deductible to keep our premium lower. We have no co-pay."...

Attempt to legalize marijuana for medical use fails again (03/13/09)

Chalk festival, dinner drama to light up Main Street Le Mars (02/17/09)
Chalk. A jewel thief. A rib fest. Le Mars is in for a bit of the unusual in the year ahead. The Main Street program and the Chamber of Commerce are trying some fresh events to reinvigorate downtown Le Mars. Mary Reynolds, the new Main Street Manager, is helping pioneer some of the ideas...

Doctors on screen coming to Plains Area (12/23/08)
Wait time to see a psychiatrist or clinician at Plains Area Mental Health Center could be shortened thanks to a new teleconferencing system. It's called Telehealth and it will allow a physician to be in one location while a client is is in another. "By giving us more face-to-face time with a psychiatrist, it should reduce patient wait time, the time it takes to get an appointment," said Patrick Schmitz, Plains Area Mental Health Center's executive director...

Uncertain economy pinches health care patients and centers (12/22/08)
Today's economic downturn isn't only affecting what consumers pay at the pump or for groceries, it's also affecting how they pay for health care. Some families have to make a decision as to whether to pay for their health care needs because of higher insurance deductibles, co-pays and larger responsibilities in paying for care...

Is your inhaler earth-friendly? It will be (12/11/08)
Drug companies are changing how inhalers puff to protect the environment. Common inhalers, used by people who suffer from asthma, upper respiratory infections or chronic pulmonary diseases no longer can contain CFCs, or chlorofluorocarbons, according to a new law that goes into effect Dec. 31, 2008...

LCS teachers group proposes salary, insurance increases (12/02/08)
Le Mars Community Education Association members are proposing increases in base pay and insurance for the 2009-10 school year. Members of the bargaining team for the LCED met with Le Mars Community Schools Board of Education members Monday to present their initial proposal...

Le Mars Insurance cuts 12 jobs (11/06/08)
Twelve layoffs were announced Wednesday at the Le Mars Insurance Company. "It was primarily driven by gains in efficiency due to a significant investment in technology," said Jeff Miller, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Donegal Insurance Group in Marietta, Penn., the parent company of Le Mars Insurance...

Courthouse shuffle begins (11/05/08)
The Plymouth County Supervisors took the first step Tuesday toward rearranging the courthouse to make more room for crowded offices. The main push was to make more room for the cramped Juvenile Court Services. The supervisors approved moving the Veterans Affairs office, currently on the main floor of the courthouse in the northeast corner, to the lower level. There that office will share the space with the Zoning and Sanitation offices, which are only used one day a week...

Sign-up deadline nears for new disaster program (08/07/08)
Sign-up for the SURE, the new USDA disaster program, is underway, and the deadline to participate in this year's program is Sept. 15. SURE is a permanent disaster program that will be specific to each farmer. Unlike previous USDA disaster programs, this one does not require an Act of Congress for it take place...

City accepts fee increase for emergency medical services (08/06/08)
Some ambulance fees are going up but most users won't feel the impact. Le Mars City Council members Tuesday, on recommendation from Bill Rosacker, Le Mars ambulance director, authorized city acceptance of a Wellmark-introduced change in payment for emergency medical services (EMS)...

In her field: Woman-to-woman ag group offers place to learn (07/09/08)
Crystal Jauer, a mother of two, is working back on the same rural Hinton farm she grew up on. And she's loving it. "I like the interactions with people, the variety, and the farming lifestyle -- having the kids grow up with the family values," she said...

Rural roads see more fatal teen accidents (05/12/08)
A recent study found that teens driving on rural roads are more likely to be involved in a fatal accident than teens driving in metropolitan areas. Allstate Insurance Company's study analyzed federal crash statistics and their company's claims data to identify hotspots where fatal teen crashes are higher than others...

LCS board waives early retirement requirement (03/20/08)
Le Mars Community School board members gave their approval to a waiver of Board Policy 405.1 concerning early retirement at their Monday meeting in response to a request from teacher Terry Lane. Lane, who will complete his 32nd year with the school district in May, requested the board waive the age 55 clause to allow him to retire at the end of the school year, even though he won't turn 55 until the second day of workshops for the 2008-09 contract year. ...

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