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• Partners get insurance but will be taxed on benefit; more state briefs
• UPDATED: One confirmed dead after CTH V collision
• Feds may bailout Wisconsin's Medicaid program; more state briefs
• UPDATE: One confirmed dead after CTH V collision; names not released

Almost 600 state government employees have signed up for the health insurance that's being offered to their domestic partners for the first time.

But those couples face another hurdle married couples don't: new taxes. Federal law treats health coverage for domestic partners as income.

Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, is working to change that. She put a tax exemption for domestic partner health benefits in the House version of the national health care reform bill. But it's not in the Senate version that passed last week, and a conference committee will decide if it goes in or out.

If it stays out, state corrections' Sgt. Rachael Merry told the Wisconsin State Journal it will cost her partner and the woman's daughter an extra $4,500 a year.

The state budget passed this year grants health benefits to domestic partners of state employees, starting on New Year's Day. Officials say it will cost an extra $4.8 million next year.

Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, said he's proud to pass the measure, because U-W Madison is no longer the only Big Ten university that does not offer domestic partner benefits. Almost 180 UW employees have signed up statewide.

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Wisconsin family passengers on terrorist flight

Five members of a Wisconsin family were on the ill-fated Northwest flight that almost didn't make it to Detroit.

A 23-year-old man from Nigeria is accused of trying to set off a bomb as the plane was about the land Christmas Day.

Charles and Patricia Keepman were on the flight with their daughter Richelle and two new members of their family. The Keepmans were returning from Ethiopia where they had just adopted two children.

Richelle Keepman said she could tell something was wrong by the look of fear on the flight attendants' faces. The Keepmans were sitting about 20 rows behind Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab.

Richelle said her new six-year-old sister and eight-year-old brother don't speak English, so they didn't really know what was going on. She sang to them to keep them calm.

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State's ginseng industry flourishing

Officials say a new $12 million deal with China shows just how much Wisconsin's ginseng industry has recovered.

Butch Weege of the state's Ginseng Board said growers had doubts about their future when fraudulent marketing and piracy eroded the crop's marketing status a few years ago.

Then China started cracking down on sellers who stuck the Wisconsin label on inferior varieties of ginseng. In the three years that followed, Chinese authorities uncovered up to 50 cases of fraud.

Now Weege says Wisconsin's 200 ginseng growers are back to having a strong industry that's worth $15 million a year.

Recently Gov. Jim Doyle announced a $12 million deal with a pharmaceutical company in China to distribute Wisconsin's ginseng exclusively. Weege said a similar arrangement is in the works with another distributor in Taiwan.

Wisconsin produces about 95% of all ginseng grown in the United States.

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Boy dies in snowboarding accident

Authorities in west central Wisconsin continue to investigate a weekend snowboarding accident that killed a nine-year-old boy.

Dylan Nerby was at his grandparents' farm in Jackson County. Authorities said his snowboard skidded onto County Trunk P in front of a van driven by a 19-year-old rural Taylor man Saturday afternoon.

Sheriff's officials say the driver stopped and agreed to be questioned.

Dylan Nerby was flown to an Eau Claire hospital where he died. He was a fourth-grader at Blair Taylor Elementary School.

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Snowmobile fatality investigated

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is investigating a snowmobile crash in north central Wisconsin that killed an Oxford man.

William Titschler, 22, died at a hospital in Tomahawk.

The crash was reported early Sunday morning near Tomahawk in Lincoln County. Authorities said Titschler's snowmobile left a road and hit a tree. Officials said excessive speed and alcohol might have been factors.

Titschler is at least the fourth person to die in a Wisconsin snowmobile crash this winter - the same number as a year ago at this time.

As of Dec. 21, the DNR had reported deaths this season in Oconto, Oneida and Crawford counties. There were 23 snowmobile deaths statewide last winter.

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Teens using seatbelts more

Wisconsin teenagers are buckling up more than they did 16 years ago.

A new survey of high school students shows only 15% say they rarely or never buckle up when riding in a car driven by another person.

Back in 1993 nearly double that number said they left their seatbelt unbuckled.

One out of four students said they have ridden in a car with a driver who had been drinking. That figure is also much lower than 1993.

The survey of 2,400 Wisconsin high school students was done last spring. Nine percent of those responding said they had driven a car after drinking alcohol. In 1993, that figure was 15%.

The woman airlifted to Regions Hospital in St. Paul following a two-vehicle crash south of Ellsworth Monday morning has died from her injuries but injuries suffered by the driver of the other car didn't appear life-threatening and Pierce deputies hope to interview that individual tomorrow to determine what caused the head-on crash.

Trooper Bill Traynor, one of two State Patrol officers who spent several hours at scene Monday attempting to reconstruct the accident, said one of the vehicles crossed the centerline to cause the crash. Pavement was dry so it wasn't weather-related, he said.

Vehicles involved were a 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix and a 1992 Dodge sedan. Both were likely travelling at or near the speed limit, which is 55 mph in that area, Traynor said.

The crash occurred on CTH C just over a small knoll, between the two intersections of county highways V & C. The second driver was taken by ambulance to River Falls Area Hospital for treatment of injuries.

The accident occurred west of the east intersection of Highways V and C, about four miles southeast of Ellsworth in the town of Hartland.

As of 4 p.m. Monday, the Sheriff's Department was not releasing the names of those involved.

The roads remained closed to local traffic until mid-afternoon when the investigation was complete. Ellsworth ambulance and fire personnel were called shortly after 9 a.m. Monday. A helicopter was summoned due to a prolonged extrication of one victim, who was described as having head and other traumatic injuries. Ellsworth Ambulance personnel and LifeLink staff worked nearly 30 minutes to stabilize the victim before flying from the scene.

All available sheriff's deputies and investigators responded to assist with traffic control, as did Ellsworth police chief Greg Place.

A portable sign from the Pierce County Highway Department was also deployed to help detour traffic as the investigation continued late Monday morning.

Monday's accident occurred about three-quarters of a mile west of one about six years ago that took the lives of three Ellsworth residents: Todd Zimmer, 30, and his wife Michelle, 29 and daughter Haley, age 4. All died after their eastbound passenger car collided with a westbound pickup truck on an icy, snow-covered CTH V on the evening of March 11, 2003.

MADISON -- Gov. Jim Doyle says he expects Congress will help Wisconsin patch what could be a billion dollar hole in its Medicaid budget.

Part of Wisconsin's Medicaid budget shortfall was actually anticipated. The budget the governor signed back in June was only balanced because it assumed the state Department of Health Services would find $600-million in savings. The Department's plan would find that money in part by cutting reimbursement rates to pharmacists who treat Medicaid patients and by kicking a big piece of the shortfall until the next budget.

But because enrollment in Medicaid has shot up by more than planned, the program's budget hole could grow by hundreds of millions of dollars more. Doyle says that could require more cuts to hospitals and pharmacists, but he expects Congress will provide more money to help states with Medicaid. He says if Congress provides money for an additional six months that will take care of Wisconsin's Medicaid issue.

Medicaid's budget is regularly in deficit and has grown faster than any other state program over the past decade. Critics suggest that's evidence that all of Medicaid needs an overhaul. But Doyle says he's not worried about some kind of collapse. He says people have been telling him Wisconsin's Medicaid program will collapse over the last eight years, and it's held up well as a national example of what a state can do. more than a million Wisconsin residents are now enrolled in Medicaid in one form or another. That means almost 1 in 5 has a stake in the program.

-- Shawn Johnson, WPR

Last week of the year important for farm loans

MADISON -- Farmers are scrambling to re-adjust their loans or apply for new ones before the New Year when many banks will decide which loans become delinquent.

Last year was a record year as far as loan applications to the Farm Service Agency office in Wisconsin, with more than $350-million in loans and loan guarantees. Ray Ellenberger, the state FSA's Farm Loan Chief, anticipates the loan numbers could be substantially higher this year because of the economy and tighter credit markets. He says the state is typically number one or two in the nation as far as the credit put up to lenders and farmers. He says pretty much all of the more than 5,000 agriculture producers they serve will be re-adjusting their loans. Roger James is the Farm Mediation Coordinator for the Wisconsin Farm Center. James says they've received many more financial calls this year. For 2010, he says mediation cases could double the 40 or so they saw last year. James says the big factor in restructuring debt is in the amount of unsecured debt such as bills to feed suppliers or veterinarians.

Meanwhile, the FSA's Ellenberger says many suppliers have gone to cash only in the last six months, putting ag producers in even more of a bind.

Ellenberger says until farmers are back in the fields, their loan officers will be under a lot of stress trying to process as many applications as possible. He says they are once again becoming known as the lender of last resort.

-- Danielle Kaeding, WPR

DNA problems not resolved yet

MILWAUKEE -- Accused serial killer Walter Ellis of Milwaukee faces trial this spring for murdering seven women. But the fallout concerning the late discovery of his DNA at the crime scenes hasn't yet been resolved.

When Ellis was arrested in August, it was revealed that the state had failed to collect his DNA and that of thousands of other felons who should have been in the state data base. The discovery of the snafu prompted the creation of a committee made up of Department of Justice and Department of Correction officials tasked with collecting the missing DNA samples.

Attorney General JB Van Hollen says about half of the missing samples are now accounted for, and that both agencies are working together to get as accurate a list as possible. Van Hollen doesn't expect all DNA samples to be collected, but they've collected 5,500 offender DNA samples since August, something he calls "great progress in a short time."

Most of the collections are being done by county sheriffs. Earlier this month, the Milwaukee County Sheriffs department reported they were still searching for more than 500 felons who never submitted samples after their convictions. Van Hollen says the other side of the coin is dealing with requests from attorneys to process DNA samples for ongoing trials. That process is limited by the number of DNA analysts in the state crime lab. He says it's a "big battle" to maintain the requests as they are getting more submissions with the same or fewer resources.

Van Hollen says finding a way to staff the state Crime Lab with enough DNA analysts is one of his top priorities in the coming year.

-- Gil Halsted, WPR

Ashland County has a rash of overdose deaths

ASHLAND -- A perplexing problem of prescription drug overdose deaths is alarming law enforcement officers in far northern Wisconsin.

Ashland County Sheriff John Kovach says prescription pain killer overdoses have killed four people in the last six months in his rural county. He says it's the top priority for the Chequamagon Bay Drug Task Force. But so far, there are no solutions. He says the county has averaged about two overdose deaths a year and he calls four deaths in six months "unprecedented."

Kovach says lethal concoctions of oxycontin, hydrocodone and other pain killers have killed 17 people in Ashland County in the past five years. In neighboring Bayfield County, Red Cliff Tribal Police Chief Charlie Bresette says prescription drug overdoses have accelerated in the past two years. He says teenagers think because the drugs are prescribed by a doctor, it's safe. Bresette says prescription drug parties are the "new, in thing" for kids in different parts of the country, where they dump their parents' medicine in a bowl and take handfuls of pills.

Both say a prescription drug monitoring program is needed. The Attorney General's office says Wisconsin is one of only ten states without a prescription drug registry. A bill has been proposed in the State Assembly.

-- Mike Simonson, WPR

Study finds 20 percent of teens take prescription drugs illegally

MADISON -- A new study shows that one in five Wisconsin teenagers have taken prescription pain killers without permission.

The problem of prescription drug abuse by high school age students is so new, this is the first time the Department of Public Instruction has asked the question in its annual "Youth Risk Behavior Survey". The D-P-I's Safe and Drug-Free Program's Steve Fernan is surprised so many students say they have experimented with prescription drugs. He says continuing to track this in the survey will allow them to determine if it's a growing or declining trend.

The study says 11-percent of high school age teens took prescription drugs to get high. This emerging problem is now on the state Attorney General's radar. Department of Justice Special Agent Brad Dunlap says prescription drug abuse is leading to drug overdose deaths among teens and surpassing illegal drug overdoses in Wisconsin. He says death from oxycontin use alone is greater than coke, crack and methamphetamine combined.

Dunlap says statistics from the four county area of Outagamie, Winnebago, Fond du Lac and Calumet shows more deaths from prescription pain killers among teens than from street drugs. He believes that trend probably is reflected statewide.

-- Mike Simonson, WPR

Newspaper preservation project underway

MADISON -- State historians and journalists are collaborating on a massive project to preserve Wisconsin's newspapers.

The Wisconsin Newspaper Association and the Wisconsin Historical Society both want to keep today's news around for future readers. The plan expands the newspaper association's current clipping service, with whole pages of local papers being digitized as high-resolution PDF files. The WNA's Peter Fox says his staff then saves these files for the historical society, which prevents a lot of hassle. Before, WHS staff would have to acquire, inventory, and photograph newspapers, then convert the images to microfilm.

"A lengthy and laborious procedure," says Fox.

The digital format also spares Wisconsin's newspapers from mold, humidity, dust, and mice. But Helmut Kneis of the Wisconsin Historical Society's archives division, says they're still working out how to best store and protect these documents from electronic hazards.

Kneis says the project serves their core mission well. He says preserving newspaper content is one of the best ways the Historical Society can document what happens on a daily basis throughout Wisconsin.

Kneis says they're using state, private, and federal money, including a $50,000 digitization fund -- to preserve more than 300 Wisconsin papers. They've started from April 2005 and hope to catch up to current editions by next year.

-- Brian Bull, WPR

The woman airlifted to Regions Hospital in St. Paul following a two-vehicle crash south of Ellsworth Monday morning has died from her injuries.

But injuries suffered by the driver of the other car didn't appear life-threatening, and deputies hope to interview that individual tomorrow to determine what caused the head-on crash.

According to a press release sent at 4:30 p.m. by the Pierce County Sheriff's Department, the names of both parties are being held pending notification of families.

Trooper Bill Traynor, one of two Wisconsin State Patrol officers who spent several hours at the scene Monday attempting to reconstruct the accident, said one of the vehicles crossed the centerline to cause the crash. Pavement was dry so the accident wasn't weather-related, he said.

Vehicles involved were a 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix and a 1992 Dodge Colt. Both were likely travelling at or near the speed limit, which is 55 mph in that area, Traynor said.

The crash occurred on County Road C just over a small knoll, between the two intersections of county roads V and C. The second driver was taken by ambulance to River Falls Area Hospital for treatment of injuries.

The accident occurred west of the east intersection of V and C, about four miles southeast of Ellsworth in the town of Hartland.

As of 4 p.m. Monday, the Sheriff's Department was not releasing the names of those involved.

The roads remained closed to local traffic until mid-afternoon when the investigation was complete. Ellsworth ambulance and fire personnel were called shortly after 9 a.m. Monday. A helicopter was summoned due to a prolonged extrication of one victim, who was described as having head and other traumatic injuries. Ellsworth Ambulance personnel and LifeLink staff worked nearly 30 minutes to stabilize the victim before flying from the scene.

All available sheriff's deputies and investigators responded to assist with traffic control, as did Ellsworth police chief Greg Place.

A portable sign from the Pierce County Highway Department was deployed to help detour traffic as the investigation continued late Monday morning.

Monday's accident occurred about three-quarters of a mile west of one about six years ago that took the lives of three Ellsworth residents: Todd Zimmer, 30, and his wife Michelle, 29, and daughter Haley, age 4. All died after their eastbound car collided with a westbound pickup truck on an icy, snow-covered County Road V on the evening of March 11, 2003.