Healthcare Budget Highlights
Wisconsin has a reputation for consistently providing some of the best healthcare in the Midwest as well in the whole country. It is important for our communities to have access to the highest quality care.
The State Legislature has been hard at work, during the first half of 2023. A new two-year state budget has been enacted into law. As part of our new budget, I voted to provide more than $3 billion in new funding to support accessible and affordable healthcare in our state.
Much of the new funding is intended to help address the most pressing healthcare challenges that our state faces. We increased reimbursement rates for hospitals, primary care providers, emergency department doctors and behavioral health unit services. We also maximized our investment in supplemental aids for hospitals – both urban and rural – who serve the largest number of Medicaid patients. And we continued partnering with free and charitable clinics and Aging and Disability Resource Centers who provide local care and local referrals.
The budget also recognized the challenges involved with caring for our aging population. Nearly $500 million of new money will be put into the long-term care industry by supporting skilled nursing facilities and increasing base rates for home and community-based services that help seniors remain in their own homes. It will also boost wages for direct care workers and personal care workers.
Our healthcare system can only be as strong as its people, so we also included a series of investments in the next generation of healthcare workers who are the highest in demand. We continued the WisCaregiver Careers Program to help more prospective workers enter the industry. We expanded support for residency programs at hospitals. We funded a new psychiatry residency program and we backed the revitalization of our state’s only dental school.
All of our investments are intended to help improve access to care that can be difficult for patients to find, and are aimed at lowering insurance premiums and costs for people throughout Wisconsin.
The Outagamie County Fair is underway!  Click here to learn more!
Capital Christmas Ornaments
It’s only July, but the 2023 Capitol Christmas ornaments are already available for sale at the State Capitol Rotunda Information Desk for $20. The 2023 Christmas ornaments feature the 40th anniversary of the Concerts on the Square. The information desk also has the 2022 and 2012 ornaments available for $20 and $15 respectively.
Free Wisconsin Travel Guides
If you’re planning a Wisconsin vacation and looking for fun things to do in our state, you can order free Wisconsin travel guides from our state web site.
In the Capitol
Chris Martinson stopped by the office this week.
Upcoming Events
Outagamie County Fair
Outagamie County Fairgrounds, Seymour
July 19-23
Art at the Park
City Park, Appleton
July 22-23
EAA AirVenture
EAA Grounds, Oshkosh
July 24-30
Winnebago County Fair
Oshkosh
August 2-6
Greenville Summer Send Off
August 26
