The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection confirmed the virus was found on a commercial poultry farm in Barron County.
The post Threat of avian flu returns to Wisconsin with new species at risk appeared first on WPR.
A plane carrying Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Tiffany was forced to make an emergency water landing in Wausau Saturday night.
Tiffany, who represents Wisconsin’s 7th Congressional District, said the small aircraft lost power during its final approach for landing at the Wausau Downtown Airport.
During a press conference at the Wausau Fire Department Sunday, Tiffany said he believes the pilot, Leonard Boltz, attempted to restart the plane, but was unsuccessful.
“At that point, he just said, ‘Hang on, Tom, and buckle up because we’re going to go down,’” Tiffany told reporters. “It was just real shortly after that, I would guess 10 seconds, we hit the water.”
Boltz landed the plane in the middle of Lake Wausau on the Wisconsin River, according to information shared by the Marathon County Sheriff’s Office.
Tiffany said he lost his phone in the crash, but Boltz was able to call 911. He estimates they stood on top of the sinking plane for roughly 10 minutes, before beginning to swim toward shore. He said they discovered a sandbar after 150 feet and were able to wait there for emergency responders.
The sheriff’s office reported dispatchers received the call at 8:49 p.m. Saturday. Firefighters from the Wausau Fire Department rescued the two men using an airboat around 9:05 p.m.
Tiffany credited Boltz for pulling up the landing gear before hitting the water, which he said likely kept the plane from cartwheeling and may have saved their lives. He estimates the plane was going around 70 miles per hour at the time of the crash.
“It was quite a night, quite a day, and (I’m) just grateful for the Lord for sparing us to see another day,” said Tiffany, who became emotional when speaking to reporters Sunday.
Tiffany and the pilot were the only people aboard the aircraft. Both were transported to Aspirus Wausau Hospital with minor injuries.
Tiffany said he received 12 stitches to close a laceration in his eyebrow after his head hit the dashboard. The pilot also sustained minor injuries. Both men were released from the hospital Saturday night.
The congressman repeatedly thanked the Wausau Fire Department and other first responders for their quick rescue.
He said the incident would not keep him from continuing his campaign for governor, adding that he planned to be back on the campaign trail Monday.
“I signed up for this job. We’re going to finish the job,” Tiffany told reporters.
An investigation into the loss of power on the Beechcraft K35 airplane will be handled by the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board.
The aircraft remained in Lake Wausau, according to a statement from the Marathon County Sheriff’s Office. Officials asked boaters to avoid the area and use caution until crews can remove the plane.
David Crowley, the Democratic candidate for governor, wrote on X that he is grateful that no one was hurt in what he called a “horrifying incident.”
John Chmiel, Wausau Downtown Airport manager, was among those to survey the waterlogged plane on Sunday morning.
Chmiel noted aircraft incidents like this are incredibly uncommon.
“You think about it, in your community there’s probably multiple car accidents a day,” he said. “In the United States of America, there are less than a half dozen (aircraft incidents) a day in the entire USA, so that kind of puts things in perspective.”
Chmiel said the pilot – in his opinion – had done everything right in identifying the area for the plane to land and guiding it into the water, especially after the sun had gone down.
“Which was a very difficult maneuver to execute safely,” Chmiel said. “And he was able to actually retract the landing gear, so he would have a better result of landing on the water.”
He’s also a pilot and owns Wausau Flying Service.
“Regardless of what happened leading up to the accident, once he knew he was committed to a water landing, he did every single thing right. It was awesome flying,” Chmiel said.
When asked by WPR if this is a normal procedure for an emergency, to look for a water landing, Chmiel said he’s always taught pilots to look for alternative landing areas.
“The beautiful thing about water is there typically isn’t obstructions or people or vessels in there that you have to worry about hitting,” he said.
That said, actually pulling it off safely is its own art, he added.
“We spend our whole careers trying to prevent that from happening, and sometimes things slip through the Swiss cheese, as we call it,” he said.
When an aircraft accident happens at an airport, the process is different, Chmiel said. In this case, where the plane hit water off airport property – it wasn’t necessary for him to be involved, but he said he was Saturday night.
“It’s not a common occurrence, but we’re always prepared for it, if it does,” he said.
This story was originally published by WPR.
Tom Tiffany swims to safety after plane makes emergency lake landing is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.
Tiffany suffered a laceration above his right eye that required stitches and was released from the hospital Saturday night, according to information shared by his campaign.
The post Tom Tiffany swims to safety after plane makes emergency lake landing appeared first on WPR.
JD Greenwalt, president and CEO of Westby Cooperative Creamery, said the new equipment will increase their cottage cheese making capacity by 50 percent and allow them to make a more consistent product by using automation.
The post Westby cooperative celebrates first-in-the-nation cottage cheese manufacturing upgrade appeared first on WPR.
On Friday, Trump issued a pair of executive orders filled with policies long called for by American ranchers.
The post Wisconsin meat processors, farmers want more details on Trump proposals to help US beef industry appeared first on WPR.
American farmers are bracing for the impact of new tariffs exchanged between the U.S. and Canada on both their supply costs and their sales.
The post As the US and Canada slap new tariffs on goods, American farmers are stuck in the middle appeared first on WPR.
The annual corn roast event was first started by former Congressman Ron Kind's campaign back in 2003. Now, it's become a chance for Democrats to fire up their base in a part of the state seen as critical to winning the governor's mansion and in the state Legislature.
The post Democrats fire up western Wisconsin voters as November election nears appeared first on WPR.
Federal data shows only 85 percent of Wisconsin kindergarteners were vaccinated against measles during the 2025-26 school year.
The post Wisconsin health officials urge back-to-school shots as measles spreads appeared first on WPR.
Wisconsin-based cheese company Sargento is hoping to update the processed classic to reflect how consumers are eating today.
The post ‘Natural’ American cheese? Wisconsin company says it’s made a low-ingredient alternative appeared first on WPR.
As people around the world mourn the recent death of legendary singer and songwriter Dolly Parton, children in western Wisconsin will soon benefit from her legacy of philanthropy and support of early literacy.
The post Libraries bring Dolly Parton’s free book program to western Wisconsin appeared first on WPR.
A measles outbreak in the southwestern corner of Wisconsin continues to grow.
As of Friday, the state Department of Health Services has identified 41 confirmed and 7 probable cases across Iowa, Lafayette and Grant counties.
All but one of the people infected with measles in Wisconsin this year have been unvaccinated, according to state data. Just over half of the cases have been in children and teens, while 44% are in adults.
State and local health officials are working to stop the highly-contagious virus from spreading further. But that work is being made more complicated by low vaccination rates in some communities.
DHS spokesperson Jennifer Miller said in an email that while the situation remains fluid, “we are seeing confirmed cases in pockets of our communities where individuals are under-vaccinated or unvaccinated.”
“Whenever there are pockets of lower immunization coverage — whether due to geographic location, health care access, or personal reasons — highly contagious viruses can spread quickly,” Miller wrote.
Like the rest of the U.S., childhood vaccination rates have fallen in Wisconsin as parents’ uncertainty, and in some cases skepticism, around vaccines has spread in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
But state data shows some of the southwestern communities have had declining uptake of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine series well before pandemic.
Only 60% of two-year-olds in Lafayette County had received one or more of the shots in 2025. Grant County’s rate was just under 64%.
Iowa County, where the majority of the recent measles cases have been located, had a rate similar to the statewide average at nearly 81%. But it’s still well below the threshold needed to prevent an outbreak at 95%.
One community in the region that may be affected by lower vaccination rates are the Amish and Mennonite faith groups. The Christian communities are collectively known as Plain people because of their selective use of modern technology and conservative style of clothes.
Wisconsin has the fourth-largest Amish population of any state in the country, with an estimated 27, 535 Amish people living in the state as of 2025. The population data from Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania shows more than 3,000 Amish live across Grant, Lafayette and Iowa counties.
Mark Louden, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of Germanic linguistics, is an interpreter and cultural liaison for the state’s Plain communities. He said the Plain people in Grant and Lafayette Counties have strong family ties to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
“There’s a lot of back and forth, just like people traveling back and forth, visiting and so forth, especially this time of year,” he said.
Lancaster County is home to the largest Amish settlement in the U.S. and is at the center of a major outbreak of measles that has sickened more than 300 people in Pennsylvania.
Louden said that while Amish and Mennonites have community standards for technology, health care choices are left up to individuals and their families.
“Even the most conservative or traditional groups out there do access Western healthcare,” Louden said. “While there may be some families that have their kids not vaccinated at all, that’s pretty exceptional.”
Louden characterized Plain communities as “vaccine cautious.” He said they’re more likely to choose which shots they want their children to get instead of just following a recommended vaccination schedule.
But he said their caution or even distrust of vaccines doesn’t just come from their cultural beliefs.
“(It) has been amplified by what they hear from their non-Plain neighbors, who are going down internet rabbit holes and watching certain networks,” Louden said.
Jack Sauer, chair of the Lafayette County Board of Supervisors, said like many places in the U.S., his county used to have higher rates of vaccination. But he questioned how much national rhetoric that questions childhood vaccinations, including from leaders of President Donald Trump’s administration, have had an impact.
“If you listen to anyone on the federal level, there’s a lot of going back and forth on whether the immunizations are good for you or bad for your or whatever they are,” Sauer said. “But I know when I was growing up, which was a long time ago, they were pretty well acceptable.”
Given the rapid spread of cases in neighboring Iowa County, he expects to see more cases in his county before the outbreak is over.
Iowa County Health Officer Debbie Siegenthaler said in an email that her department is working to identify cases and potential exposures and make sure people have access to testing and vaccination.
She strongly encouraged residents to check their vaccination status through the Wisconsin Immunization Registry or through their healthcare provider, especially as children head back to school.
“With increasing number of cases, we want residents to be aware of measles even if they have not been notified of a direct exposure,” Siegenthaler said in the email.
The county is holding a community vaccination clinic at the Mineral Point Rescue Squad office on Monday, Aug. 24 from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.
This story was originally published by WPR.
Low vaccination rates drive southwest Wisconsin measles outbreak is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.
State and local health officials are working to stop the highly-contagious virus from spreading further. But that work is being made more complicated by lower vaccination rates in some communities.
The post Low vaccination rates driving measles outbreak in southwest Wisconsin appeared first on WPR.
One person is hospitalized in Wisconsin and two have been hospitalized in Minnesota, according to health officials from each state.
The post 17 in Wisconsin, 23 in Minnesota sickened in E. coli, salmonella outbreak appeared first on WPR.
Wisconsin hospitals charge nearly 26 percent more for inpatient services than similar health systems in Illinois.
The post Report: Care at Wisconsin hospitals more expensive than in Illinois appeared first on WPR.
Wisconsin health leaders worry future work requirements for Medicaid recipients will create both an administrative and ethical burden for doctors and other providers.
Starting next year, adults ages 19 to 64 will be required to work, go to school or volunteer for 80 hours per month to qualify for coverage under the safety-net program.
The new rule, which was included in Republicans’ “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” last year, provides exemptions for several groups, including people who are pregnant, live with children under 19 and those with a recognized disability.
There is also an exemption for people with serious or complex medical conditions, or those considered “medically frail.”
In guidance released in June, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, said state Medicaid programs should consider not only a person’s diagnosis or condition but also “the extent to which the condition impairs an individual’s ability” to meet the new requirements.
But Dr. Ken Schellhase, a primary care physician and member of the Wisconsin Medical Society, said making that determination is not simple, even for a doctor.
“That will require training and skills that the typical primary care doc does not have,” he said. “Honestly, that’s a big reason why most docs in primary care practices don’t do the official disability evaluations for Social Security.”
Doctors working in occupational medicine or rehabilitation are specially trained to objectively determine someone’s functional capacity, Schellhase said, but few such providers practice in those fields.
Speaking to reporters on July 30, Wisconsin Department of Health Services Secretary Kirsten Johnson said the state needs more guidance from CMS as it develops a system for verifying who qualifies for the exemption.
She said DHS plans to use existing records like medical billing to verify that someone is unable to meet the work requirements. CMS will also allow recipients during the first year to self-attest that they are unable to work.
Scott Stewart, CEO of the Wisconsin Primary Health Care Association, said the existing system for health insurance claims is not designed to indicate a person’s level of impairment or their ability to work.
“It’s set up to say this is what a patient has, but it’s not set up to say anything more than that,” Stewart said. “You have to really also think about the privacy aspects of that. Now you’re saying that I have to potentially give a patient’s chart, which they have to sign off on in terms of HIPAA, to say that they are medically frail and meet all definitions?”
Schellhase worries that involving medical charting and billing could influence how doctors care for their patients, including how quickly they make a diagnosis. He described someone seeking for treatment of asthma symptoms.
“Not everybody who wheezes has asthma, and so sometimes we struggle with as a diagnosis code,” he said. “Do we put in just wheezing? Or have we seen it enough times, but it’s just not absolutely confirmed that yeah, this person probably has asthma? There’s a lot of gray area in that.”
He said patients with conditions not considered severe enough for exemption could see their health decline if they lose health insurance. And he worries the new process will create a conflict of interest for doctors who have a professional obligation to help, not harm, their patients.
“We’re supposed to be that patient’s advocate, to do whatever’s in our power to help them and get them the help that we think that they need,” he said.
Stewart, whose organization represents the state’s federally supported community health centers, said increasing paperwork requirements have lead to more people losing access to care.
He’s concerned that health systems will be incentivized to help patients qualify for an exemption to keep their coverage so providers can continue to bill the program for care.
“We’ve seen issues with the Medicare Advantage program and things like that in the same way, around wanting patients to have access to these programs, but having the kind of perverse financial incentive to get them on (the program),” he said.
WPR contacted several major Wisconsin health systems for comment on the potential impact of the work requirements but received no responses.
The Wisconsin Hospital Association, or WHA, declined WPR’s interview request. In a statement, WHA’s senior vice president for finance and payment, Christian Moran, said the association appreciates DHS’s efforts to “minimize additional regulatory burdens on hospitals and providers while helping eligible individuals maintain Medicaid coverage and reducing the risk of higher uncompensated care in Wisconsin hospitals.”
Moran wrote that WHA will continue to watch the state agency’s plans as more details become available.
This story was originally published by WPR.
Wisconsin doctors worry Medicaid work rules will create ethical, administrative burdens is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.
According to unofficial results, Cooke, a Democratic fundraising consultant and former small business owner, had 57 percent of the vote, while Eau Claire City Council President Emily Berge had 42.9 percent.
The post Cooke victory in 3rd Congressional District Democratic primary sets up rematch appeared first on WPR.
The new rule, which was included in Republicans' "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" last year, provides exemptions for a number of groups, including people who are pregnant, have children under age 19 who live with them and people with a recognized disability.
The post Wisconsin health providers worry new Medicaid work requirement hurts doctor-patient relationship appeared first on WPR.
Gov. Tony Evers is urging federal officials to reverse new requirements for stores that accept food assistance, saying the coming changes will worsen food insecurity in the state.
The post Evers says new SNAP rule will hurt small businesses, rural Wisconsinites appeared first on WPR.
Of the 86 Wisconsin hospitals rated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, 64 percent received a four- or five-star rating for overall hospital quality.
The post Nearly two-thirds of Wisconsin hospitals receive top federal quality ratings appeared first on WPR.
Adults between the age of 19 and 64 will be required to work, volunteer or complete school or job training for at least 80 hours a month to qualify for coverage.
The post DHS: 63K Medicaid members lack documentation to meet federal work requirements next year appeared first on WPR.
Login