Written by UW-La Crosse

Link to original story: https://www.uwlax.edu/news/posts/a-powerful-partnership-mue/

MILWAUKEE — A federal judge blocked the Trump administration from making large cuts to medical research funding on Wednesday. It’s just a temporary pause.

This comes weeks after the University of Wisconsin-Madison announced it could lose $65 million under a new federal effort to cut down on medical research costs, according to court documents filed Monday.

Some of the university’s largest medical research programs aim to treat Alzheimer’s disease and discover cures to cancer.

The lack of research on Alzheimer’s is worrisome for people like Ben Koenigs. He believes research is vital to find a cure for the devastating disease.

“If someone doesn’t have to deal with what I have had to deal with for so long, then awesome,” Koenigs said.

It’s been a tough decade for his family. They’ve watched his dad, Bernie, slowly suffer from Alzheimer’s.

Ben Koenigs

TMJ4’s Megan Lee asked Koenigs what it’s like to have his dad physically here but mentally fading.

Koenigs said, “I mean it’s hard.”

They moved his dad to a nursing home as his memory started to decline.

“Watching my dad suffer for like ten years with this is making me a little bit stronger but not all the time and it never gets easier really,” Koenigs said.

Ben Koenigs

He isn’t alone in this scary reality. According to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, 120,000 people in Wisconsin had Alzheimer’s in 2020. That number is expected to grow this year.

“What’s scary is like it was my grandpa on my mom’s side and then now it’s my dad, so it’s like oh boy it’s coming for me,” Koenigs said.

Watch: Milwaukee caregiver worried over potential Alzheimer’s federal research cuts

Concerns about potential cuts to Alzheimer’s research

The Alzheimer’s Association says nearly 7 million Americans are living with the disease and research must continue. Especially at research centers like the one at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

“I don’t see any reason why it should be stopped at all, it doesn’t make too much sense to me,” Koenigs said.

The Alzheimer’s Association said cuts and changes from the National Institutes of Health will be far reaching.

“I don’t know why you wouldn’t want to try make people live as long as possible, as comfortable as possible with the right resources,” Koenigs said.

Koenigs wants to prevent the next family from watching their loved ones fade away.

“Unfortunately, it might be too late for my father, but like anything that could help with the next person that might be struggling with this stuff,” Koenigs said.

Ben Koenigs

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The split-squad Brewers will take on the split-squad White Sox on Wednesday afternoon as the two teams face off in a home and away series. One game will be played at American Family Fields of Phoenix and the other will be held at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona, the spring home of the White Sox.

Freddy Peralta will get the ball first for the Cactus Crew in the home game, making his second start of the spring. Peralta posted an uninspiring stat line in his first outing against the Giants (2 IP, 3 ER, 2 HR, 1 BB, 3 K), but most of the damage came on a single mistake that Matt Chapman hit over the fence. Bryse Wilson will be the first pitcher for the White Sox in this matchup. He faces the Brewers in his second spring training appearance after being non-tendered by the club in the offseason. Wilson signed a one-year deal with Chicago, where he will get a shot as a starting pitcher after two solid seasons in a long-relief role for Milwaukee.

In the away matchup for the Crew, Tobias Myers will make his second start of the spring after his one-inning outing against the Rangers on Saturday, in which he gave up no runs on one hit with one strikeout. Myers will face 13-year veteran Martín Pérez who signed a one-year, $5-million deal with the White Sox in January. Pérez has been a league-average innings eater for most of his career, but had one All-Star season in 2022 when he posted a 2.89 ERA across 32 starts for the Rangers.

Also slated to pitch today for the road Brewers is Chad Patrick, Logan Henderson, and Grant Anderson. The home Brewers will also deploy Deivi García, Abner Uribe, Nick Mears, and Bruce Zimmermann. Uribe’s appearance will mark his first game back since missing the second half of 2024 with a knee injury that required surgery.

On the offensive side of the ball, the Brewers will keep most of their expected starters at home with Brice Turang, Jackson Chourio, Christian Yelich, William Contreras, Garrett Mitchell, and Joey Ortiz all staying back to face Wilson. Tyler Black at first base, Caleb Durbin at third base, and Mark Canha as the DH round out the lineup for the home Brewers. Most notably from the defensive lineup is the fact that Yelich will be in LF today, not serving as the team’s DH.

Rhys Hoskins and Sal Frelick will get their at-bats with the away Brewers, featuring a lineup that also includes Vinny Capra, Oliver Dunn, Manuel Margot, Andruw Monasterio, Eric Haase, Jorge Alfaro, and Luis Lara. Dunn will be at third base, with Capra at short and Monasterio at second, as the three compete for a spot on the big-league roster.

First pitch for the road Crew is at 2:05 p.m. with the home game starting at 2:10 p.m. The home game will also be available via radio on mlb.com.