Nursing home bill blocked in the legislature

A bill sought by the nursing home industry has been killed by a key statelegislator. One legislator says it’s a story of how lobbyists can sometimes sneaksomething through. The bill in question cleared the Iowa Senate unanimouslyand was presented as something that was NOT controversial. On Monday,Governor Vilsack raised concerns about the bill. Republican leadersscoffed, questioning how Vilsack would know better than 50 Senators. ButRepresentative Mona Martin, a republican from Davenport, has been working onnursing home reform for the past four years — and she says Vilsack isright. Martin has used her authority to stop the bill in its tracks.Martin says the bill appeared out of nowhere.Martin says the bill also eliminated some state fines against nursing homes.