An empty room in the ICU on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, at Meriter Hospital in Madison, Wis. (Angela / Major/WPR) Wisconsin’s June 2023 restart of annual eligibility checks for Medicaid following a three-year pause has eliminated coverage for more than 360,000 residents, as WPR and Wisconsin Watch reported this month. Some of those disenrolled had struggled to fill out recertification paperwork, and others have faced difficulties in finding alternative insurance plans. Many who lose Medicaid coverage have turned to the federal Health Insurance Marketplace, where low-income households can qualify ..read more

The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee march in the Juneteenth parade in 2023. The Northcott Neighborhood House will host Milwaukee’s 53rd Juneteenth Jubilee Parade on Wednesday. (NNS file photo by Sue Vliet) It’s Monday in Milwaukee, and here are some things we think you should know about. If you would like your event to be considered for this column, please submit your news by clicking here at least two weeks in advance. 1. Milwaukee Mobile Crisis Tabling at Capitol: Tuesday, June 18 The Milwaukee Mobile Crisis team will be giving away free Narcan, fentanyl testing strips and medica ..read more

The SDC Board of Commissioners meet in person and virtually on June 13. (Photo by Meredith Melland) People who used the Social Development Commission to help file their taxes will be able to resume appointments as soon as next week. The SDC’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance, or VITA, program is one of many social services that was put on hold when the agency suspended operations and laid off its employees in late April. La Casa de Esperanza is scheduling appointments starting Monday, June 17 at the Internal Revenue Service Taxpayer Assistance Center, 211 W. Wisconsin Ave., for taxpayers who pa ..read more

A child chooses a new bike during the 2023 Bike Day hosted by the Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers. The next bike giveaway is from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 15. (Photo provided by Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers) It’s Friday in Milwaukee, and here are some things we think you should know about. If you would like your event to be considered for this column, please submit your news by clicking here at least two weeks in advance. 1. Bi Movie Night: Friday, June 14  Bi+ Pride Milwaukee invites you to its “Bi Movie Night,” which honors bisexuals and pansexuals in f ..read more

This property at 7930 W. Clinton Ave. – an old vehicle emissions inspection center – has been selected as the site for the new juvenile correctional facility in Milwaukee. (NNS file photo by Edgar Mendez) Milwaukee’s long-awaited new juvenile prison has reached another milestone in the years-long construction process. The end of bidding for contractors to construct the new prison inches the state toward the fulfillment of state law and the closure of Lincoln Hills School for Boys, a Type 1 juvenile correctional facility, the most secure type of juvenile correctional facility in the Wisconsin D ..read more

Milwaukee residents like Maria Beltran are unsure when renovations on their homes will be finished following the shutdown of the Social Development Commission in April. Pictured is Beltran’s home being partially lead abated in December 2022. (Photo provided by Maria Beltran) Lindsay Heights resident Maria Beltran relied on the Social Development Commission for years for home improvements, including the installation of new furnaces and weatherization. The Social Development Commission, or SDC, is a quasi-governmental community action agency responsible for providing a variety of services to low ..read more

Residents gather to demand an investigation of the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee in August 2023. (File photo by PrincessSafiya Byers) In a push for change, Common Ground has nominated seven candidates to serve on the board of the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee.  Board members are nominated by the mayor with the approval of the Common Council. However, no one has been nominated for the board of the Housing Authority, also known as HACM, since August 2022.  Since then, residents have demanded an investigation and leadership change at the Housing Authority, alle ..read more

Bright lights shine over the Waupun Correctional Institution at night in Waupun, Wisconsin, on Aug. 6, 2023. The Waupun Correctional Institution is one of three correctional facilities in the town of about 11,300. Waupun is the oldest prison in Wisconsin, built in 1851, and is a maximum security penitentiary that houses about 900 inmates. The former warden of a Wisconsin prison and eight other prison employees were charged last week in connection with multiple prisoner deaths over the last year, the local sheriff said. The prison, Waupun Correctional Institution, about 70 miles northwest of Mi ..read more

Every month, members of the Muskego Way neighborhood on the South Side meet to discuss issues ranging from housing resources to safety. The next meeting will be held on Monday, June 10. (Photo provided by Alison Henderson) It’s Monday  in Milwaukee, and here are some things we think you should know about. If you would like your event to be considered for this column, please submit your news by clicking here at least two weeks in advance. 1. Muskego Way Neighborhood Meeting: Monday, June 10  The Muskego Way neighborhood meeting will be held from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Monday, June 10 ..read more

The Milwaukee Public Schools school board held a special board meeting on June 3. (Photo by PrincessSafiya Byers) The Department of Public Instruction on Thursday said it is withholding a $16.6 million payment to MPS for special education services because of missing financial data This news comes only days after Milwaukee Public Schools Superintendent Keith Posley resigned in the wake of the financial scandal that could jeopardize millions of dollars in state aid. In a news release, the Department of Public Instruction said it will continue to work with MPS on a plan to get payments released ..read more