GOP lawmakers introduce legislation to increase hospital pricing transparency (MADISON)
Republican lawmakers introduce legislation to increase transparency in hospital pricing. Advocate MD owner Dr. Nicole Hemkes believes some of the complexities of medical costs are designed to keep charges hidden and very difficult for healthcare consumers to understand and navigate. In a release, the Wisconsin Hospitals Association says Wisconsin ranks first in the country in hospital price transparency. The legislation authored by Senators Julian Bradley and Mary Felzkowski and Representative Bob Wittke, would require hospitals to publish clear, accessible pricing information online for both common procedures and the full range of hospital services.
WI officials still recommending COVID boosters despite changes at CDC (UNDATED)
Wisconsin officials are still recommending COVID-19 boosters despite a guidance shift at the federal level. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention no longer advises the vaccine for healthy children and pregnant women. The Wisconsin Department of Health Services says the updated vaccine can still help protect against severe illness, particularly for pregnant women, infants, and the elderly. DHS says the CDC changes in guidance were not made based on new data, evidence, or scientific or medical studies. More information on COVID-19 in Wisconsin is available on the DHS website.
Be wary of bogus credit card offers targeting grads, says BBB (UNDATED)
Young people headed to college or out on their own after high school need to be wary of credit card offers. Lisa Schiller with the Better Business Bureau says there are shady businesses looking to prey on people with fresh credit histories. Schiller says starting with a low limit credit card from your bank is probably the best place for high school grads to start from.
SCOTUS rules for Catholic Charities (WASHINGTON)
The U.S. Supreme Court rules a Wisconsin charity doesn’t have to pay state unemployment taxes. Thursday’s unanimous ruling involves the Catholic Charities Bureau, which argued the state violated the U.S. Construction’s religious freedom guarantee by requiring payment of the tax while exempting other faith-based groups. Wisconsin argued Catholic Charities has paid the tax for decades and isn’t exempt because day-to-day operations don’t involve religious teachings. Catholic Charities said it’s due the exemption because its disability services are motivated by religious beliefs. It appealed a Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling which upheld the state’s position to the U.S. Supreme Court.
50 pounds of meth lands man 11 years in prison (MARATHON COUNTY)
A central Wisconsin man is going to prison following the takedown of a large meth trafficking ring in Marathon County. 32-year-old Joshua Lake of Stratford will serve 11 years in federal prison after investigators found he was responsible for distributing more than 50 pounds of the drug in Central Wisconsin in early 20-24. They caught up to him after he sold to an undercover agent in February of that year, leading officers to raid his home a few weeks later. There, Lake waved his right to remain silent and pointed officers to items in the home and admitted that he was scheduled to fly to Mexico in the near future. Officers found both meth and cocaine in the home along with a firearm. Three other individuals are serving between two and a half and seven years in prison for their roles.
Woman’s body pulled from Bay of Green Bay in Door County. (GIBRALTER)
Door County deputies are investigating after a woman’s body was pulled from the Bay of Green Bay. The department says divers recovered a woman’s body off the shore of Peninsula State Park Wednesday afternoon. An autopsy is underway in Brown County to determine the woman’s cause of death, and the woman has not been identified pending notification of her family.