Univ. Iowa Hospitals and Clinics healthcare workers call on Iowa leaders to step up in fight against COVID-19

IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) - Healthcare workers from the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics called on Iowa’s leaders to “step up” in the fight against COVID-19 by providing personal protective equipment and needed resources.

In a joint statement from unions released Wednesday in response to record high COVID-19 hospitalizations, the healthcare workers said leadership is lacking right now. It called on Gov. Reynolds and elected officials to promise they would make Iowa patients with the virus their number one priority.

This also comes after Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand said Gov. Reynolds spent $21 million in federal pandemic relief funds on a new executive branch software system – a move he said was inappropriate use under the law.

The statement said healthcare workers need those funds for patients.

See the full statement below:

"Iowa marked a grim milestone yesterday. For the first time since the coronavirus hit our state, more than 500 patients were in Iowa hospitals being treated for Covid-19. Our members at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC) have seen firsthand how devastating this illness can be. In fact, more than 600 UIHC employees have themselves been infected with Covid-19. We and all workers on the frontlines of the fight against Covid need Iowa’s leaders to step up and provide the personal protective equipment and the resources necessary for us to care for Iowa.

“Unfortunately, that leadership is lacking right now. This week we learned that Gov. Kim Reynolds tried to funnel $20 million of coronavirus relief funds into upgrading a state computer system. We need those funds for patients, not computers. Together, we’re calling on Gov. Reynolds and every elected official in Iowa to promise that they will make the lives of Iowa’s patients their Number One priority.”

Copyright 2020 KCRG. All rights reserved.