Month: June 2011

The state is blocking plans by the Milwaukee Health Department and University Health Services in Madison to apply for federal grants that would provide about $27.5 million for health programs designed to promote healthier lifestyles and reduce chronic diseases such as diabetes. Dennis Smith, secretary of the state Department of Health Services, contends that the programs would duplicate services already being offered in Wisconsin. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 6/30)

A group of orthopedic surgeons is challenging research by UW-Madison spine specialist Thomas Zdeblick, saying he failed to disclose risks of a bone-growth substance made by a company that has paid him at least $21 million in royalties. Zdeblick and UW-Madison officials defended his actions. They said he reported risks of the substance when appropriate and followed rules on disclosing his royalties, which are for Medtronic devices other than the product under scrutiny. (WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL, 6/30)

Carrying a cooler of raw milk, Wisconsin vegetable farmer Brian Wickert climbed the steps of the state Capitol on a sunny April day. He was a man on a mission: to lobby for legislative support for a bill to legalize sales of unpasteurized milk. For Wickert, the bill is about the freedom to live without interference from the government. But for health officials in America’s Dairyland, it’s about potentially exposing unsuspecting citizens to disease-causing bacteria. (WISCONSIN CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM, 6/30)

F. Barkow Inc., a small Milwaukee manufacturer founded in 1879, hasn't ruled out someday dropping health benefits for its 10 employees. The company, which outfits trucks that transport glass panes, spends about $12,600 a year to provide an employee with family coverage - not including the $4,200 contributed by the employee - for a health plan with a high deductible. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 6/30)

Columbia St. Mary's Health System is eliminating 150 jobs as part of its response to lower patient volumes at its hospital in Mequon after Aurora Health Care opened a hospital in nearby Grafton. The health system, which employs about 5,000 people full-time and part-time, eliminated about 30 positions for managers, directors and supervisors earlier this month. A few of those positions were vacant. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 6/29)

Doctors who received millions of dollars from device maker Medtronic repeatedly failed to reveal serious complications linked to the company's lucrative back surgery product in 13 papers they co-authored for medical journals over the course of nearly a decade, according to a scathing new review. The review, published Wednesday in the Spine Journal, found complication rates that were 10 to 50 times greater than the estimated complication rates revealed in the papers co-authored by the doctors, who had financial ties to the company. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 6/29)

After months of heated debate, ear-splitting protests and legal maneuvering, Gov. Scott Walker's divisive collective bargaining law is finally set to take effect. Secretary of State Doug LaFollette published the law in the Wisconsin State Journal newspaper on Tuesday. The measure goes into effect Wednesday, capping an ugly four months in Madison that saw state senators flee the state and massive protests at the state Capitol. (AP, 6/29)

A Dane County judge found probable cause to believe that Ralph Lang of Marshfield could be found guilty in connection with his plan to kill Madison abortion clinic employees but stayed further proceedings until results of a mental competency hearing are available. (WAUSAU DAILY HERALD, 6/28)

A fire suppression system accidentally triggered last week caused the computer shutdown that forced Aspirus Wausau Hospital officials to reroute ambulances, a spokesman said today. Aspirus spokesman Greg Aune said the system was inadvertently activated in the hospital’s data center during maintenance. (WAUSAU DAILY HERALD, 6/28)