11-21-13 healthcare reform panel

Fond du Lac Agnesian Healthcare officials say there is going to be pain for some people when healthcare reform begins in January…but hopefully for only a short period of time.  Agnesian hosted a panel discussion on the topic Wednesday night and answered questions from the public.  Agnesian president and CEO, Steve Little, tells WFDL news there are a lot of unanswered questions about healthcare reform and individuals want to be sure they are taking the right steps to be ready.  "The biggest concern is do I have to have insurance and if I do have to have insurance then where can I get it and how much is it going to cost?"   Little says Agnesian has been working with their associates to help patients and families navigate a maze of information.  The main healthcare reform features include requiring everybody obtain health coverage or pay a penalty, eliminating certain insurance restrictions such as requirements relating to pre-existing conditions, and requiring employers with more than 50 full time employees to provide affordable health coverage. 

11-21-13 healthcare reform-medicare

The Fond du Lac County Senior Services benefits specialist says there is a lot of confusion and myths as healthcare reform rolls out the first of the year.  Julie Hilbert says right now the biggest concern Is being able to access and use the online exchanges.  With the Medicare open enrollment period in full swing Hilbert says its important to know that people on Medicare don’t need to worry about the online exchanges.

 

 

11-21-13 uw reserves

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Legislature's Audit Committee wants more information from the University of Wisconsin System before it will vote on its plan for how much money it will keep in reserves. The committee delayed today's scheduled vote. The UW Board of Regents created a policy earlier this year requiring campuses to justify reserves above 15 percent after it came to light that the UW system had built up massive reserves while hiking tuition for six straight years.

11-21-13 congressional gold medal

WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress is bestowing the Congressional Gold Medal, its highest civilian honor, on American Indians who used their native language to outwit enemies and protect American battlefield secrets during World Wars I and II. Among those at today's ceremony in the U.S. Capitol building were members of Congress, the military and 33 tribes from at least nine states, including Wisconsin.

11-21-13 great lakes water levels

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — Federal scientists say heavy rain and snow have greatly increased Great Lakes water levels but that it's too early to declare an end of the slump that has affected most of the system since the late 1990s. A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers official said today that the water level on lakes Huron and Michigan are nearly a foot higher than last November. It hit a record-low early this year.

11-21-13 state supreme court to hear voter photo id law

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin Supreme Court has decided to hear arguments in two separate lawsuits challenging the state's requirement that voters show photo identification at the polls.  The court's orders were issued Wednesday.  One case was brought by the Milwaukee branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the immigrant rights group Voces de la Frontera. A Dane County judge ruled in 2012 that the law was unconstitutional.  The appeal of that case was scheduled for arguments Dec. 17 before the 2nd District Court of Appeals, but now the Supreme Court is taking the case.  The Supreme Court says it will also hear arguments at the same time in a second lawsuit challenging the law filed by the League of Women Voters.

11-20-13 ripon man arrested for making bomb threats

A Ripon man is arrested for making bomb threats at two Berlin businesses.  29-year-old Anthony P. Peterson is currently in the Green Lake County Jail on two felony counts of making a bomb scare and two misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct.  Berlin Police Chief Dennis Plantz says the first call came in to the Green Lake County Communications Center October 31^st around 6:45 p.m.  The caller stated there was a bomb in a Berlin factory that would explode at 8:30 p.m.  Plantz says another call was received November 11^th around 8:00 p.m. from the same caller stating two bombs would explode in Berlin Factors at 9 p.m., back to back.  Plantz says their investigation in the matter led them to Peterson by using cell phone and other technological information.  Plantz says when he was confronted, Peterson confessed to the bomb calls.  The Berlin Fire Department /Emergency Management, Green Lake Co. Sheriff’s Office, Brown Co. Bomb Squad, City of Ripon Police Department, Wisconsin Department of natural Resources, Wisconsin Department of Criminal Investigation, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation assisted The Berlin Police Department in the case.