Weigh in on WisMed Board decisions on policy proposals

The Wisconsin Medical Society (WisMed) Board of Directors (Board) recently acted on three policy proposals submitted through PolicyLink. Now WisMed members can weigh in on those Board actions via PolicyLink and register their support, opposition and/or comments. The comment period for this round of policy proposals will be open through Friday, June 17.

To participate in the comment period:

1. Visit policylink.wismed.org
2. Login with your WisMed username and password*
3. Click “Comment on Proposal” in the top menu
4. Select “Vote on Board Action”
5. Click on a blue proposal title – you will see the original proposal, the Policy Review Committee’s recommendation and the Board action
6. When ready, click on agree, disagree, or neutral in regards to the Board's action and submit any comments if desired in the text box
7. Click “Submit Comment” button at the bottom of the page

Note: For this round of proposals, the Board took the same action on two separate proposals seeking to strengthen WisMed policy on restrictive covenants, so the Board action will read identically for those two proposals.

Have a policy that you want to submit for consideration?
While in PolicyLink click on “Submit Proposal” (in the menu bar at the top of the page) and enter your proposed policy. Policies submitted during this period will fall into the next submission funnel to be posted on July 15, 2022.

Contact Society Chief Policy and Advocacy Officer Mark Grapentine, JD with any questions.

*PolicyLink requires your WisMed username and password. Click here to retrieve your username or password, or call 866.442.3800 or email membership@wismed.org for assistance.

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Wendy Molaska, MD, FAAFP, presents Presidential Scholar Award

Recently Wisconsin Medical Society (Society) President Wendy Molaska, MD, FAAFP, presented the 2022 Presidential Scholar Award to Zachary Dunton, a student at UW School of Medicine. The Presidential Scholar Award recognizes future medical leaders who are active participants in advocacy through the Wisconsin Medical Society or their local county medical society. This year the scholarship was named in honor of past Society president, Robert Jaeger, MD. Doctor Jaeger was a leader within the Society, a champion of the Foundation and a consistent supporter of a medical students.

"I was so honored to be able to present Zach Dunton with the Presidential Scholar Award," stated Molaska. "He has already shown remarkable leadership through the Society and his activities with the medical school and I can't wait to see what he accomplishes as he continues down this path of becoming a physician leader."

Dunton was nominated by Tosha Wetterneck, MD, MS, a past president of the Society. In her letter of recommendation, she noted Zachary’s robust understanding of health policy, his passion for advocating for patients and his willingness to learn and contribute to the betterment of the profession. While in school he has been an active participant in the Wisconsin Medical Society and Dane County Medical Society.

“The Wisconsin Medical Society has shaped my medical education in ways I never could have imagined,” wrote Dunton. “This incredible group of inspirational doctors taught me how to shape the future of medicine for our profession and our patients. While there are innumerable problems in the field of health care, the Wisconsin Medical Society taught me how to fight for a more ideal future.”

You can support the future of medicine in Wisconsin by donating to the Foundation’s scholarship program. If you would like to learn how you or your county medical society can establish a legacy of support for students, please contact Foundation Executive Director Elizabeth Ringle.

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Stay off “the list” by contributing to WISMedPAC

“I’d like to make a contribution, but I don’t want to end up on a list!” We frequently hear that comment. Nobody wants to be inundated with mailings, emails and political phone calls.

That’s why the Wisconsin Medical Society’s WISMedPAC is just for you! When you contribute to our PAC (political action committee), your contribution goes into one big account with all the other contributions to the PAC. WISMedPAC only gives to Wisconsin state candidates and committees, not federal. It’s run by the WISMedPAC Board, and all contributions are approved by the executive committee of physicians and the Society’s CEO. Your name is not reported as giving to any political candidate or committee, only to our bipartisan PAC.

The board focuses contributions to leadership committees (both Democratic and Republican) in both the State Assembly and State Senate and other leadership roles. Because our membership covers the political spectrum, so do our PAC contributions.

The PAC distributions go to committees and leaders that are in sync with our policy priorities for our advocacy efforts. For example, the advanced nursing independence bill was a priority to defeat during the last legislative session. Governor Evers vetoed the bill, and our PAC may take special notice of those elected officials who voted against the legislation.

We encourage you to get engaged for this upcoming election. If you would like to keep a low profile, WISMedPAC is right for you! GO PAC GO!

Please contact Heidi Green at heidi.green@wismed.org or 608.358.6116 with any questions.

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Reducing college cost by more than $140,000

A WisMed Financial client reduced their daughter’s 4-year college cost from $170,803 to less than $30,000 total! If your child will be a junior or senior this fall, you may be planning some college visits this summer. During those visits, you’re probably evaluating quality of school and campus life. Let’s evaluate cost too.

However, the sticker price of college is virtually meaningless! Schools use one of three formulas to determine your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The EFC is being replaced by the Student Aid Index (SAI) so you may encounter that term as well. The EFC is the amount the school believes the family can afford to pay.

Here’s the client’s EFC math for the private school of their choice.

$77,841 sticker price - $41,000 EFC = $36,841 need
$36,841 need x 97% need met by school x 93% need met with school grants = $33,234 grants
$77,841 sticker price - $33,234 grants = $44,607 cost per year

With inflation adjustments and the discount for a second child attending college in three years, this family was facing a total cost of $170,803 to send their oldest daughter to a 4-year school.

But wait! Their daughter has strong academics: a 33 ACT, 1470 on the SAT and 3.84 unweighted GPA. Using this, we searched for schools that provided the best merit scholarship and found three schools to add to their list.

University of Miami = $13,980
University of Texas at Arlington = $943
Texas A&M University = $28,071

Believe it or not, these totals are for four years, not the cost of each year.

Not only were these schools much less expensive, two of the three schools had a higher Forbes ranking than the private school they chose.

If you have a college-bound child, access your complimentary College Money Report™ to understand:

• How much colleges think you can afford
• If your child qualifies for grants and/or scholarships
• How much you will be expected to pay out of pocket

If you haven’t yet, be sure to also download the complimentary Physician Financial Guide from wismedfinancial.org

For personalized help eliminating debt, investing smart and securing retirement, please contact Mark Ziety, CFP®, AIF® 608.442.3750.

Mark Ziety, CFP®, AIF®
WisMed Financial, Inc. part of the Wisconsin Medical Society.

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