Winneshiek Medical Center Board is taking steps to comply with the Iowa Open Meetings Law

Last April the State Auditor's Office delivered a letter to the Winneshiek Medical Center Board of Trustees that said, "We question the propriety of the (WMC Board's) numerous and lengthy closed sessions for 'strategic planning.'"  
 
Research by decorahnews.com had discovered that the hospital board in less than two years had held 15 closed door meetings lasting a total of over 900 minutes, with all the meetings described as only "strategic planning closed sessions."  

The letter from the State Auditor's Office ruled that "Holding closed sessions without stating a specifically allowable section of (the Open Meetings Law) which would permit the closed session does not appear to comply with the statutory requirements of (the Open Meetings Law)."
 
As part of the hospital board's settlement with the State of Iowa, the board agreed to hold training sessions on the Iowa Open Meetings Law.  The WMC held such a training session Thursday at the end of its regular board meeting, with its lawyer, Diane Kutzko of Cedar Rapids, leading the training.
 
While decorahnews.com discovered that 15 out of 20 meetings held by the WMC Board in 2011 and 2012 included closed sessions for unspecified reason, a review of the last 14 meetings held by the WMC Board shows it has held only four closed door sessions, with each session citing a specific reason for the closed door session and referencing a specific portion of the Iowa Open Meetings Law.