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Mass. woman shares EEE survival story, lingering effects years later [Video]
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Mass. woman shares EEE survival story, lingering effects years later [Video]

LONG TERM CONSEQUENCES. THESE ARE TWO OF MY GREAT GRANDCHILDREN. IN 1962, SHIRLEY BARLOW WAS LIVING IN MILTON, NEAR A HORSE RANCH. AND SHE SAYS THATS PROBABLY HOW SHE CAME IN CONTACT WITH A MOSQUITO CARRYING A VIRUS. THAT LITTLE STINKING MOSQUITO BIT THE HORSE. GOT ME FOR THREE DAYS. BARLOW COULDNT GET OUT OF BED. THEN, WITH A TEMPERATURE OF 104, HER MOTHER TOOK HER TO THE HOSPITAL, WHERE DOCTORS SAID SHE HAD EASTERN EQUINE ENCEPHALITIS THAT WAS CAUSING HER BRAIN TO SWELL AND THAT THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO. PEOPLE WERE COMING AND SAYING GOODBYE TO ME. THATS. YEAH, BECAUSE THEIR LAST GOODBYES. THERE WAS NO YEAH, THERE WAS REALLY NO HOPE FOR ME. THERE IS A VACCINE TO PROTECT HORSES AGAINST TRIPLE E, BUT NONE HAS EVER BEEN APPROVED FOR HUMANS. SAME GOES FOR ANTIVIRAL MEDICATIONS. PART OF THE PROBLEM AGAIN, IS BECAUSE ITS SUCH A RARE INFECTION, WHICH IS FORTUNATE WE DONT HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY REALLY TO TEST ANTIVIRALS. EVERYONE SURPRISED A FEW MONTHS AFTER BARLOW GOT SICK, SHE GOT WELL ENOUGH TO GET MARRIED. SHE WENT ON TO RAISE TWO SONS AND TRAVEL THE WORLD, BUT STILL TAKES MEDICATION FOR HEADACHES. STARTS IN THE BACK. AND ITS LIKE YOU CANT SEE. ALMOST MAKES YOU BLIND. AND BARLOW CONTINUES TO WARN EVERYONE SHE CAN ABOUT THE DANGERS OF TRIPLE E. SO WHEN I SEE THESE THINGS, THE TRIPLE E AND OXFORD NOT FAR FROM US, I HAVE MY FAMILY LIVING THERE AND I TELL THEM, DONT GET OUT. SOME EXPERTS BELIEVE THAT CATCHING TRIPLE E MIGHT MAKE PEOPLE IMMUNE TO THE DISEASE. FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES, BUT SHIRLEY BARLOW IS NOT TAKING ANY CHANCES. SHE US

Senator accuses MPS of wasting money on out-of-state school visits [Video]
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Small Business Funding

Senator accuses MPS of wasting money on out-of-state school visits [Video]

Milwaukee Public Schools is failing to follow a new state law to put police back in schools. When Gov. Tony Evers enacted the shared revenue bill, or Act 12, MPS became required to bring 25 school resource officers into their schools by January 2024. The deadline passed and a state lawmaker is accusing the district of breaking the law and wasting tax dollars on out-of-state school tours. “Never in a million years had I thought the school district would just break the law and just ignore it,” Republican Sen. John Jagler of Watertown said. The MPS Board of School Directors meets Thursday night and is expected to provide an update on their plan to implement school resource officers, but the district is nearly nine months behind what state law requires. Jagler said MPS is failing to hold up its end of the bargain, the new sales tax caveat that required MPS to have the resource officers by January 2024. The school board voted out student resource officers following protests in 2020. “We asked them what happened, what they’ve been doing, and what they said they’ve been doing is sending employees on taxpayer dollars to other cities. How much did that cost?” said Jagler. “I mean, this is crazy. They are a district that is cash-strapped, that is in an accounting deficit. They simply just wasted money.”In an email Jagler shared with WISN 12 News, MPS told him they traveled to four places for site visits, including Washington D.C., Atlanta, plus two other schools in Georgia. “It gave me a lot of insight on how the program should be done in the right way,” said school board member Henry Leonard. Leonard spoke with WISN 12 News reporter Kendall Keys at an MPS event Thursday and said he went on the Georgia trip. “They’re older, well-established. I was impressed by what they actually did in their buildings. So it was good to come back to the rest of the board directors and have something substantive to show them and explain how it works. So yeah, I think it was something that was very necessary to do,” Leonard said. “Was this necessary when the district was in a funding deficit and was under this tight deadline?” Keys asked. “I think very much so, because no board director would be supporting something that they really were going to go into blind,” Leonard said. Milwaukee Police Association President Alexander Ayala said the district already had a previous model. “We already had a model here so we could use the same model that we had,” Ayala said. Keys asked Leonard why the district decided not to use that model. “I’m not really sure, to be honest. I mean, I was a teacher then, so I remember the model pretty clearly. I do remember in our conversations with Chief Norman and whatnot that there were some things we had to work out with MPD because that program initially started really well and then they had some struggling with it,” Leonard said. Leonard said the board wants to make sure a new model doesn’t hurt the community. It’s safe to say there won’t be officers in school by the start of classes Tuesday. “When will we see these officers go into the school buildings? Do we know that yet?” Keys asked. “I have no idea. No, there’s none of that. We haven’t even gotten close to that actual position,” Leonard said. Keys asked Leonard what he would say to state legislators who accuse the district of breaking the law. “Well, I would say to the state legislators, you probably should contact some of us directly, so we can give you a better idea of how long it would take to put this together,” Leonard said. The district promised an update on their progress in implementing school resource officers and a plan moving forward at Thursday’s board meeting at 5:30. WISN 12 News filed open records requests to find out how much the district spend on out-of-state visits. WISN 12 News asked Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman about the mandate. “Still being worked on. We are ready, we are leaning into the particular type of planning. But again, we’re only one part of this whole overall planning and I know that there’s a lot of work that’s going on within the MPS board and their administration in ensuring they got whatever they want to agree to for this process,” Norman said.

Here’s how Baltimore will spend its opioid restitution funds [Video]
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Small Business Funding

Here’s how Baltimore will spend its opioid restitution funds [Video]

Baltimore leaders publicly explained on Thursday how the city intends to spend money received through opioid lawsuit settlements.Mayor Brandon Scott said the pharmaceutical companies are responsible for the opioid crisis.”These companies flooded our communities with addictive opioid pills with reckless and deadly abandon, leading to widespread misuses, addiction and, tragically, thousands upon thousands of overdose deaths,” Scott said.So, six years ago, the city declined to join a global settlement with other jurisdictions and instead opted to sue the companies on its own. To date, the city has received $242 million in restitution funds, of which $20 million will go directly to the Baltimore City Health Department.”This funding will help support things like the Spot Mobile clinic, syringe services, the Staying Alive Overdose Response Program and BMore Healthy Babies to address addiction and overdose among pregnant and postpartum women,” Scott said.The mayor also signed an executive order to establish the framework for the rest of the money, which established a separate opioid restitution fund as a trust, so the funds will last at least 15 years. The order also creates two new positions within the mayor’s office dedicated to this crisis, and it establishes an opioid advisory board.The mayor also promised to host town halls, surveys and focus groups to engage the community in this fight “so all residents not just the few selected for the advisory board will be able to have their voices heard in the process.”The mayor said Baltimore has been disproportionately affected by the opioid crisis and that it needs to stop.”No one that lives in this city isn’t impacted by this,” Scott said.Baltimore City Council President Nick Mosby said he is one of many city residents who have experienced firsthand the pain of the opioid crisis.”Whether it be my brother, whether it be my cousin, whether it be my uncles and aunts, who have succumbed to this crisis,” Mosby said.11 News spoke with some of the organizations set to receive a chunk of the $42 million allocated to tackling substance use disorder and impact. The Maryland/Baltimore Safe Haven organization, which works to house and help those in need, especially the LGBTQIA community, is set to receive $3 million.”We are deeply honored, we want to thank Mayor Brandon Scott and his administration for thinking of us and thinking about the city of Baltimore,” said Ja’Nae Tyler, the director of operations for Maryland Safe Haven. “We plan to use the money on continuously expanding our services. So, that involves folks who are impacted (by the opioid crisis) and folks who were impacted.”Video below: 11 News speaks with organizations set to receive settlement funds:Executive Director and Co-Founder ofFrom Prison Cells to PhD, Dr. Stan Andrisse, also spoke with 11 News after learning his organization will receive $1 million. Andrisse said he is a formerly incarcerated person with three felony convictions and now is an endocrinologist, scientist and assistant professor at Howard University College of Medicine. “I went through this process where the prosecutor told me I was a dangerous threat to society, and I was going to be in this revolving door of incarceration. So, that weighed heavy on my mind, and I was fortunate enough to have this mentor step into my life that kind of saw me using my talents differently,” Andrisse said. “Through the journey, I came to the realization that, for folks like myself, who’ve been through the criminal legal system, without having mentorship and support in your life, it’s really hard to move past this experience.”Andrisse said that’s what lead him to create From Prison Cells to PhD, or P2P, seven years ago. The program allows former and current incarcerated people to go through a one-year program which is treated as a guide to help folks coming out of incarceration find a career through education. Andrisse said his team is still in talks about what to do with the money they are set to receive. However, he would like to open a womens transitional house. The program currently has a transitional house that consists of men.”We are absolutely, just unbelievably thankful and grateful to the city, to Mayor Scott, Councilman Cohen, who’s a close ally,” said Andrisse. “Thanks to all of the individuals that helped bring that, think of us. We had no idea that this was coming.”The city still has pending lawsuits, the next of which will go to trial on Sept. 16.Video below: Watch the mayor’s news conference

GOP candidates lead; support for abortion and sports wagering [Video]
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Small Business Funding

GOP candidates lead; support for abortion and sports wagering [Video]

FIVE STARTS NOW. AND WE BEGIN WITH BREAKING NEWS WHERE ABORTION RIGHTS COULD BE HEARD IN MISSOURI. GOOD EVENING. I AM BRYA BERRY AND IM KELLY ECKERMAN. CHRIS IS OFF. IF APPROVED, IT WOULD REVERSE THE STATES NEAR-TOTAL BAN. KMBC NINE MATT EVANS IS HERE IN THE STUDIO WITH US. AND MATT, THE GROUP BEHIND THE AMENDMENT, GOT ENOUGH SIGNATURES TO PUT THE QUESTION ON THE NOVEMBER BALLOT. THEY DID. KELLY AND BRYA. THE GROUP SUBMITTED MORE THAN 380,000 SIGNATURES TO THE SECRETARY OF STATES OFFICE EARLIER THIS YEAR, AND JUST EARLIER TODAY, THE STATE CERTIFIED THAT THEY DID GATHER ENOUGH SIGNATURES TO MAKE THE BALLOT. THIS COMING NOVEMBER. IT WILL BE ON THE BALLOT AS AMENDMENT THREE AND WOULD ENSHRINE ABORTION RIGHTS INTO THE MISSOURI CONSTITUTION UP TO THE POINT OF FETAL VIABILITY. SEVERAL STATES HAVE GONE TO THE BALLOT BOX OVER ABORTION RIGHTS IN THE PAST TWO YEARS, SINCE ROE V WADE WAS STRUCK DOWN, BUT NO STATE HAS VOTED TO OVERTURN A TOTAL ABORTION BAN, WHICH IS WHAT MISSOURI VOTERS WILL BE ASKED TO DO. THIS FALL. NOW, BOTH PRO-LIFE AND PRO-CHOICE ADVOCATES ARE GEARING UP FOR AN EXPENSIVE AND AT TIMES LIKELY NASTY CAMPAIGN. WE SHOULD BE CLEAR UP FRONT THAT AMENDMENT THREE IS FUNDAMENTALLY ABOUT ONE THING VOTING YES TO END MISSOURIS TOTAL ABORTION BAN. ITS ABOUT GIVING MISSOURIANS THE ABILITY TO MAKE THEIR OWN PERSONAL PRIVATE HEALTH CARE DECISIONS. ITS SO EXTREME FOR FOR MISSOURI, ITS ITS LIKE CALIFORNIA. THIS IS AS RADICAL AS A AS A CALIFORNIA LAW OR NEW YORK WHEN IT COMES TO HORRIFYING LATE TERM ABORTIONS OR TAXPAYER FUNDING OR WHATNOT. AND, MATT, THERES ANOTHER BIG ISSUE THAT VOTERS WILL GET TO VOTE ON. FOLLOW THIS ONE FOR MONTHS TO COWLEY. SPORTS BETTING WILL BE ON THE BALLOT AS AMENDMENT TO THIS NOVEMBER. SPORTS BETTING ALREADY LEGAL IN KANSAS AND NEARLY EVERY OTHER STATE THAT BORDERS MISSOURI. THE LEGISLATURE IN JEFFERSON CITY FAILED TO ACT ON THIS FOR YEARS, SO THE MAJOR PROFESSIONAL SPORTS TEAMS HERE WENT AROUND LAWMAKERS AND GATHERED SIGNATURES TO PUT IT ON THE BALLOT. BETS WOULD BE TAXED AT 10% UNDER THIS PROPOSAL. MONEY WOULD GO INTO A FUND TO PREVENT COMPULSIVE GAMBLING AND INTO PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND HIGHER EDUCATION EXPERTS. WE TALKED TO SAY THEY BELIEVE IT HAS A PRETTY GOOD CHANCE OF PASSING THIS FALL. ITS PROVEN TO BE PRETTY POPULAR ALL ACROSS THE US, AS DEMONSTRATED BY THE SUCCESS OF THESE. YOU KNOW, MEASURES AND BILLS ELSEWHERE. SO I DO THINK THAT THERE IS A VERY GOOD POSSIBILITY THAT VOTERS APPROVE IT. UM, WEVE SEEN SOME PUBLIC OPINION POLLING THAT SUGGESTS THERE IS SUPPORT FOR IT. THE OTHER PROPOSAL THAT WAS ALSO CERTIFIED FOR THE NOVEMBER BALLOT TODAY IS ONE THAT WOULD BOOST MISSOURIS MINIMUM WAGE TO $15 AN HOUR. AND REQUIRE WORKERS TO GET PAID SICK TIME. THAT IS A STATUTORY CHANGE, NOT AN AMENDMENT. SO IT WILL BE ON THE BALLOT AS PROPOSITION A COWLEY MISSOURI LAWMAKERS ALSO ADDED TWO OTHER AMENDMENTS TO THE NOVEMBER BALLOT DURING THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION, MEANING MISSOURIANS WILL HAVE AT LEAST FIVE QUESTIONS TO VOTE ON THIS FALL. FOR A CLOSER LOOK AT THE ISSUES THAT WILL NOW GO ON THE BALLOT, YOU CAN HEAD TO KMBC.COM. WE HAVE

Wisconsin help hotline Impact 211 sees influx of calls for food assistance [Video]
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Small Business Funding

Wisconsin help hotline Impact 211 sees influx of calls for food assistance [Video]

Local social services hotline 211 reports a 40% increase in calls from people asking for food assistance since early 2023.It’s an issue nonprofits and food pantry officials said has gotten worse since March of that year, when a pandemic boost to the federal government’s supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) ended.Outside Greater Mount Sinai Church in Milwaukee’s Hampton Heights neighborhood, Denise Holmes helps run a food pantry for neighbors in need.”If we don’t help them, where do they go?” Holmes said. Mertis Wilder, a senior on a fixed income, is one of the people coming to Holmes’s food pantry. Wilder said during the pandemic she got around $160 per month in government assistance for food. Now, she said she gets $54 per month. “The way food is in the stores now, you can’t afford to buy with what we get. And especially on a fixed income you just…you can’t do it,” Wilder said.During the pandemic, Congress increased how much people received in SNAP benefits. Beneficiaries were getting an extra $95 or more per month for groceries. But in March 2023 that pandemic boost ended.Because of that change, officials at the area’s social services hotline, Impact 211, said more people are calling and asking for help paying for food.”Its an every day crisis for many families in our community,” said John Hyatt, president and CEO of Impact 211.According to Hyatt, the reduction, paired with lingering inflation, makes it hard for some people to afford to eat.”When that funding decreased back in March of 2023…our calls have continued to rise and have gone up 40% since then, and are now exceeding even pre-pandemic levels,” Hyatt said.Hyatt said officials with Impact 211 are asking the state and federal government for more money in food assistance programs.They are also encouraging the community to donate to local food pantries. More information on 211 and Southeast Wisconsin’s food pantries can be found here.