Designation bestowed on select group of legislators
The Wisconsin Public Health Association (WPHA) and the Wisconsin Association of Local Health Departments and Boards (WALHDAB) today unveiled a list of state legislators selected as “Friends of Public Health” for the 2017-18 legislative session.
The 2017-18 “Friend of Public Health” recipients include the following legislators:
Rep. Mark Born Rep. Rob Brooks Rep. Cindi Duchow
Rep. Mary Felzkowski Rep. John Jagler Rep. Joel Kitchens
Rep. Scott Krug Rep. Amy Loudenbeck Rep. Dave Murphy
Rep. Jeff Mursau Rep. Todd Novak Rep. John Nygren
Rep. Mike Rohrkaste Rep. Ken Skowronski Rep. John Spiros
Rep. Robin Vos Rep. Dave Considine Rep. David Crowley
Rep. Deb Kolste Rep. Daniel Riemer Rep. Katrina Shankland
Rep. Mark Spreitzer Rep. Lisa Subeck Rep. Chris Taylor
Rep. Don Vruwink Sen. Alberta Darling Sen. Howard Marklein
Sen. Jerry Petrowski Sen. Tom Tiffany Sen. Janet Bewley
Sen. Jon Erpenbach Sen. Tim Carpenter Sen. Dave Hansen
Sen. Lena Taylor Sen. Bob Wirch
“This designation allows us to recognize legislators who supported bills that were important to local health officers. In particular, this includes those who supported dedicated state funding for communicable disease prevention, which was WALHDAB’s top legislative priority this past session,” said WALHDAB Co-Chair Linda Conlon.
“Dedicated state funding is a crucial step in protecting the public from the threats of communicable disease. We appreciate the chance to recognize legislators and their commitment to improving public health in communities across Wisconsin,” said WPHA Co-Chair Sue Kunferman.
In the 2017-2019 state budget, $500,000 of dedicated state funding was allocated to local health departments to combat and prevent the spread of communicable diseases. The funds can be used for reducing the burden of communicable diseases, increasing capacity to respond and follow up to instances of communicable diseases, training to increase communicable disease competencies, purchasing additional equipment and increasing awareness in the community.
Together, WPHA and WALHDAB represent over 1,200 public health professionals in communities across Wisconsin, striving to prevent, promote, and protect the citizens of the state. WPHA and WALHDAB actively engage in legislative advocacy and are committed to promoting a healthy population and workforce.