Graphic by Madeleine King
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Iowa Public Radio
The Trump administration’s wide-ranging One Big Beautiful Bill Act includes several changes to Medicaid eligibility requirements. One change that took effect on Oct. 1 bars anyone without a green card from being eligible for coverage.
Madeleine King
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Iowa Public Radio
Sheila Brummer
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Iowa Public Radio
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Afghan soldiers stood beside American troops for 20 years. Now, five years after the evacuation, many still don't know if they'll be allowed to stay. On this episode, we take stock of what's happened since roughly one thousand Afghans resettled in Iowa. We talk with Fatima Saidi, national director of We Are All America and Robyn Barnard of Human Rights First. We also discuss what today's shifting immigration rules mean for Afghans still in limbo. Then, we talk with Cate Dicharry, the new director of the University of Iowa's International Writing Program. It’s been a year and a half since federal funding cuts threatened the program, and we discuss what its future holds. -
Sioux County resident Martha Hulshof helped resettle 150 Ukrainians. Now she says many face uncertainty as protections expire. -
Former Iowa Gov. Robert Ray made a decision 50 years ago that echoed beyond Iowa's borders — a bold choice to welcome Tai Dam refugees from Southeast Asia in their hour of need. Matt Walsh, author of The Good Governor: Robert Ray and the Indochinese Refugees of Iowa, joins the show to discuss Ray's history-making decisions post-Vietnam. Then, Vinh Nguyen and Hieu Pham discuss their experiences as refugees who made Iowa home.This show was originally produced in May 2025.
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Refugees in Iowa are learning they are no longer eligible for SNAP benefits. The federal government has ordered states to start enforcing a part of the One Big Beautiful Bill that cuts off food assistance for refugees and many other types of immigrants with legal status. -
Fifty years after resettling in Iowa, younger generations of Iowa's Tai Dam community are looking to strengthen their ties to their heritage. -
Vinh Nguyen has lived in Iowa for decades, but he grew up in Vietnam during the war, which ended April 30, 1975.
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Staff members at Lutheran Services in Iowa were concerned that refugees would become homeless after federal funding cuts. But community donations filled the gap. -
A look at this week's headlines in Iowa, including a conversation with a Bosnian American for World Refugee Day.
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An update from a retired Green Beret from Ottumwa on his efforts to help his former Afghan Special Forces counterpart. Then, what the travel ban means for Afghan refugees.
