This story aired on July 14, 2025 on the 8 O’Clock Buzz on WORT 89.9FM.
Compared with their urban and suburban counterparts, rural Wisconsinites suffer more illnesses, and have a harder time finding care. Recent hospital closures and pending Medicaid cuts threaten to exacerbate these problems. A new collaborative effort with the University of Wisconsin Medical School, dubbed the Orion Initiative, seeks to reverse these trends for rural Wisconsin. Orion Initiative Chief Executive Officer Dr. Amy Kind and UW School of Medicine and Public Health rheumatology chief and associate professor of medicine Christie Bartels spoke with Monday Buzz host Brian Standing about the project.
