The statewide COVID-19 website is a one stop shop that consolidates information from state agencies, and provides up-to-date information and guidance regarding COVID-19. DHS has also offered information on their website on How and Where to Get Tested.
For information about voter ID, voter registration, and options for voting in the upcoming election on November 3rd, check out my
Contact Tracers are Overwhelmed by Wisconsin's COVID Surge
Wisconsin has become one of the world's leading hotspots for COVID-19. With daily case rates averaging about 3,975 as of today, we are surpassing states with double our population like Ohio, which just saw a record high of daily cases at 2,858 (WI hit a new record today with 5,262 new cases and 64 new deaths).
Overall we have seen about the same number of total cases as Ohio, which, once again, has about twice our population. Over the last 14 days, we have seen about as many new cases in Wisconsin as there have been in California, the most populous state in the nation.
This extreme rate of growth for a state our size has left Wisconsin's system of contact tracers overwhelmed, and some county health departments are stretched so thin that they are relying on infected residents to reach out to their contacts themselves. Dane county has adopted a "crisis model" of contact tracing, relying on infected individuals to inform their own contacts.
The State of Wisconsin Department of Health Services plans to hire more contact tracers to help control the spread, but currently, they are unable to keep up. Officials say the only way to get contact tracing back on track is for residents to increase their efforts to control the virus by staying home as much as possible, keeping physical distance, wearing masks, and washing hands.
There is one week until the election. Which means that, according to the USPS’s recommendation for mailing, today was the last recommended day to put an absentee ballot in the mail in order to have it reach your municipal clerk by 8pm on Election Day, November 3rd.
But if this wasn't possible for you, don’t worry, there are still lots of options to make sure that your vote is counted.
If you’re concerned that your ballot might not make it back to the municipal clerk by 8pm on Election Day, one option at your disposal is to fill out your absentee ballot according to the instructions (don’t forget to sign the envelope and to have a witness sign and include their address!) and drop it off at your municipal clerk’s office or at a drop off location. For more info about how to get in touch with your municipal clerk, or for drop off locations in our area, check out my step-by-step voting instructions.
If you requested an absentee ballot but would like to vote in person now instead, there are options for this too.
If you have not yet returned your absentee ballot, you can simply go and vote in person either through in-person absentee voting (early voting) or at the polls on Election Day.
If you have already returned your absentee ballot, but feel that you would like to change one of your selections, you must contact your municipal clerk and have your ballot canceled. This must be done in advance of going to the polls to cast a new ballot. If this is your intent, the Wisconsin Election Commission recommends making this choice as soon as possible to make sure that everything is processed in time.
If you have mailed your mail-in absentee ballot, but have not seen that it has been received within 7 days of mailing, or by Election Day in the Track My Ballot page of MyVote.WI.gov, you should get in touch with your municipal clerk to discuss any next steps.
You can find more information about these processes here.
US Senate Adjourns Without Reaching a COVID Relief Deal
After voting to confirm Supreme Court Justice nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, the Senate adjourned until November 9th. This makes it all but certain that a Coronavirus relief deal to help the American people will not be reached until then at the soonest.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and White House Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin continue negotiations on a deal, and the House has passed its own bill, that has not been taken up on the Senate floor.
The cities of Milwaukee, Kenosha, and Racine will be receiving two $4 million grants from the federal department of Housing and Urban Development to provide lead abatement services to more than 500 homes.
The Wisconsin Department of Health Services also plans to increase the number of children under age six who are tested for lead poisoning by working closely with the Wisconsin Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics as well as local health departments and healthcare providers.
There is also an effort to include more funding in the upcoming City of Milwaukee budget by Alderwoman Dimitrijevic to bolster such efforts within Milwaukee through a program called the SafeHomes Lead Abatement Initiative.
Milwaukee Telestories Fight Isolation by Connecting Artists to Elders
At a time when so many of our conventional habits for socializing have been turned uside down, TimeSlips and their Milwaukee Tele-Stories Project are bringing together two of the hardest-affected groups, elders and artists, to help them stay connected and inspired.
I look forward to seeing what kinds of Legacy Gifts the artists produce through their experiences providing this service, and to see what other creative ways of connecting our community might be inspired during the COVID era.
Diners can stop by any of 12 participating restaurants from October 28th-31st and receive a discount on their purchase by mentioning the Dining Days event.
It's a great opportunity to try restaurants or offerings that you haven't thought of before and a safe way to have some fun and good food!
The 12 restaurants participating in this year’s event include: Altitude Restaurant, Skyline Catering/Deli, On the Clock, Martino’s Hot Dogs, Final Approach, Iron Grate BBQ, Pat’s Niche Pub & Grub, Milwaukee Classic Pizza, Brass Monkey Milwaukee, Pizza De Brazil, Pita Palace, and Gingerz Sportz Pub & Grill. For additional information please visit the Taste of the Gateway – Dining Days Facebook page.
7 Things You Might Not have Known about the US Supreme Court
With age-old institutions like the United States Supreme Court, there is always a tremendous wealth of forgotten history. Here are 7 facts about the SCOTUS that may be news to you!
