The state Assembly held its final session day of the 2025-2026 regular legislative session on February 20, 2026, followed by the Wisconsin State Senate’s final session day on March 17, 2026. In addition, the Legislature reconvened for a special session on May 13, which is addressed above.

The following are highlights from the current biennial budget law, as well as other relevant legislation introduced during the 2025-2026 legislative session.

Fiscal Year 2025-2027 Biennial Budget Law

• Medicaid Cost-to-Continue: The budget agreement also fully funds the state’s Medicaid program – this is known as “Medicaid cost-to-continue.” This funding incorporates enough funding to pay for the increased costs of providing services and also takes into account changing Medicaid enrollment projections.
• o   In FY2025-2026, $1.529 billion is provided and in FY2026-2027, $2.279 billion is provided.

• Hospital Assessment:At present, Wisconsin hospitals pay 1.8% of their net patient revenue to the state Department of Health Services (DHS) – this is known as the “hospital assessment.” This budget agreement increases this percentage to 6%.
• o   30% of these funds will be held in the Medical Assistance Trust Fund, which helps pay for the state’s Medicaid program.
• o   The rest of this funding will be used to make hospital provider payments, resulting in over $1.1 billion in funding to go to Wisconsin hospitals.

• Home Health Skilled Nursing Medicaid Rate Increase: Provide $294,300 in FY2025-2026 and $588,600 in FY2026-2027 to increase Medicaid reimbursement rates for home visits performed by LPNs/RNs employed by home health agencies, effective January 1, 2026.
• Private Duty Nursing Medicaid Rate Increase: Provide $4.7 million in FY2025-2026 and $9.59 million in FY2026-2027 to increase Medicaid reimbursement rates for private duty nursing services provided by RNs and LPNs (excluding PDN services provided by independent practice RNs and LPNs), effective January 1, 2026.
• Personal Care Rate Medicaid Rate Increase: Provide $6.3 million in FY2025-2026 and $12.7 million in FY2026-2027.
• WisCaregiver Careers: Provide $2 million in FY2025-2026 to increase funding for this program, which aims to increase the number of certified nurse aides (CNAs) and certified direct care professionals (CDCPs) in the state.
• Free and Charitable Clinics:Increase funding for free and charitable clinics by $1.5 million between FY2025-2027.
• Federally Qualified Health Centers:Provides $800,000 annually to increase grants to such centers.
• Health Care Provider Training Grants: Provide $1 million in FY2025-2026 to increase funding for the allied health professional education training program.
• University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics: Increases the uncompensated care supplement by $10 million annually.
• Adult Level One Trauma Hospitals:Provides $35 million in grants annually to support these hospitals.
• Regional Referral Hospital Support Payment: Provides $15 million annually to a regional referral center providing tertiary-level care to residents of multiple counties.
• Grants to Health Center “Look-Alikes”: Provides $200,000 annually to such health centers that are designated as federally qualified health center look-alikes.
• o   These types of health centers are community-based health care facilities that meet federal health center program requirements, but do not receive health center program funding. These centers provide primary care in underserved areas.

• State Mental Health Institutes: Provides $15.8 million in FY2025-26 to these institutes to address a projected deficit from fiscal year 2024-25 in the civil patient treatment program.

2025-2026 Lobbying Registrations - Highlights

• Support – Assembly Bill 23/Senate Bill 39:  Creates a state Palliative Care Council, which would be “housed” at the state Department of Health Services (DHS).  The intent behind this proposed council would be to increase awareness of palliative care, which is often misunderstood by the public. Despite extensive and vigorous WiHPCA advocacy efforts, the Assembly-passed bill (AB23) failed to pass the Republican-controlled state Senate prior to the end of the 2025-2026 legislative session. However, thanks to the advocacy of WiHPCA members, this legislation advanced farther than it has during any prior legislative session. Specifically, the Assembly voted 96-1 to approve the bill and the Senate Health Committee voted 5-0 to advance the bill to the full Senate.

• Support – Senate Bill 43 – Signed by Governor: Allows advanced practice nurse prescribers to pronounce the date, time, and place of a patient’s death for purposes of the preparation of death records. This legislation passed the Assembly and Senate unanimously and Governor Evers signed it on August 8, 2025.

• Support – Senate Bill 410 – Committee Hearing Held: Provides a grant to the Wisconsin Institute of Healthy Aging for the purpose of statewide falls prevention awareness and initiatives. The Senate Health Committee held a hearing on the bill on October 22, 2025, but no further action was taken for the remainder of the 2025-2026 session.

• Support – Assembly Bill 598 – Signed by Governor: This bill allows a patient’s representative to consent to an incapacitated individual’s admission directly from a hospital to a nursing home or a community-based residential facility, without requiring a petition for guardianship or protective placement. This legislation passed the Assembly by a vote of 77-18 and the Senate approved it by a vote of 28-5. Governor Evers signed it on March 20, 2026.

Major Political and Budget Dates

• April 15, 2026:Candidates for state office may begin seeking constituent signatures on their nomination papers to appear on the election ballot.
• May 22, 2026:Incumbent elected officials who will not run for re-election in 2026 submit a notice of non-candidacy to the Wisconsin Elections Commission.
• June 1, 2026:Candidates for state office submit their nomination papers to the Wisconsin Elections Commission.
• August 11, 2026:Partisan primary election
• September 15, 2026:State executive branch agencies submit FY2027-2029 budget requests to the Governor.
• November 3, 2026:General election.
• January 7, 2027:Inauguration and beginning of the 2027-2028 legislative session.