Author
COVID surges as masks decline, hurting the most vulnerable
As COVID-19 cases rise again in Wisconsin and across the country, there are even fewer universal requirements than in the past to help protect people from contracting the novel coronavirus or spreading it to others. As a consequence, people who all along have been the most vulnerable to illness are still at risk while they […]
COVID-19 cases rise again, testing CDC’s new assessment tool
With another surge in COVID-19 infections, new cases and hospitalizations in seven Wisconsin counties are high enough combined that new federal guidelines call for everyone to wear masks when gathering indoors. In those counties, “there’s enough community transmission that the number of cases is high,” said Dr. Ryan Westergaard of the Wisconsin Department of Health […]
Providers consider what they’ll do if abortion is outlawed in Wisconsin
With a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that would overturn the constitutional right to abortion looming in the coming weeks, health care providers are preparing for how to best serve their patients seeking to terminate a pregnancy. “We are all, unfortunately, preparing for every possible outcome and looking for where we can hopefully send our patients […]
Democrats hoping for better odds in 1st District congressional race
Wisconsin Democrats are hoping that the state’s new congressional map and the pending Supreme Court ruling to overturn abortion rights will reset the political dynamics in the state’s 1st Congressional District, where voters last elected a Democrat three decades ago. The state’s congressional map, affirmed in April, redraws the 1st District’s boundaries to include the […]
Evers leads letter from governors calling for passage of federal abortion rights bill
Responding to the leaked draft of a U.S. Supreme Court opinion overturning Roe v. Wade, the decision that legalized abortion, a group of 17 governors led by Gov. Tony Evers called on Congress Tuesday to pass legislation guaranteeing abortion rights under federal law. “Reproductive healthcare decisions are deeply personal and should be made by patients […]
Lasry’s 3-point shot: Running for Senate as someone who can ‘get things done’
A political newcomer with a fat wallet to help finance a campaign and private sector experience that will help him do things in public office that career politicians can’t. That’s the niche Milwaukee Bucks executive Alex Lasry is carving out in the 2022 Democratic contest to challenge Republican Sen. Ron Johnson in November. But Lasry […]
UAW, environmental group team up to challenge postal truck contract
A union that wants jobs returned to Wisconsin and an environmental group that wants to pressure the Post Office into committing to an all-electric fleet have made common cause in a lawsuit filed Thursday against the U.S. Postal Service. The federal suit charges that the postal service failed to comply with the National Environmental Policy […]
Oak Creek Starbucks employees choose union, first in Wisconsin
Employees at a Starbucks outlet in Oak Creek voted 15-8 to be represented by Starbucks Workers United, the union announced Wednesday after the ballots were tallied. The store is the first of seven Starbucks locations in Wisconsin to hold a union representation election. Employees have organized at three other outlets with Starbucks Workers United, a […]
Fewer Wisconsin kids get vaccinations, raising risk of outbreaks
Wisconsin is falling behind in children’s vaccinations for a host of illnesses, and the state health department is urging parents and health providers to boost immunizations for kids to make up for lost ground. To draw more attention to the need for more children to get all of their childhood shots, the Wisconsin Department of […]
Finance committee gives OK to most of state’s plan for extra federal highway money
A $283 million boost in federal highway money that Wisconsin is getting from Washington got approval from the Legislature’s budget committee Tuesday, but only after the Republican majority rewrote some of the spending plan for the new funds. The discussion of the measure largely revolved around partisan jabs over credit for the plan and the […]
Grocery workers’ union joins wave of Starbucks organizing campaigns
A second union has organized to represent workers at three Starbucks locations in Wisconsin, all of them in Dane County. The United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) reported that it had filed petitions Monday with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to hold union representation elections at Starbucks outlets in Fitchburg, Monona and Madison. Employees […]
COVID-19 cases rise again, tripling in the last month
A new COVID-19 surge is underway in Wisconsin, with the average number of new cases per day now three times what it was a month ago. So far, however, hospitalizations have remained low in the aftermath of a massive spike at the beginning of 2022. According to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS), as […]