A Michigan doctor goes to Facebook over dying, unvaccinated COVID patients
by Robin Erb (Bridge Michigan) It had been another grueling weekend for doctors and staff battling to save COVID patients at Beaumont Hospital in Troy. People gasping for breath, some dying. Patients’ panic mixed with bewilderment and grief. Dr. Matthew Trunsky had slogged through plenty of these shifts since the pandemic began last year: rushing […]
Michigan hospital leader: We’re near capacity again.
by Robin Erb (Bridge Michigan) The head of Michigan’s hospital industry group said Thursday that COVID patients are straining state bed capacity as medical leaders once again urged more residents to get vaccinated against the deadly coronavirus. As of Wednesday, more than 1,400 patients were being treated at Michigan hospitals for confirmed or suspected cases of […]
Michigan unemployment director, under fire, pledges ‘user friendly’ upgrades
by Paula Gardner (Bridge Michigan) Michigan’s unemployment agency is promising a more-user friendly experience for jobless workers, announcing on Thursday it will replace a problem-plagued computer system and communicate in “plain language.” But frustration remains among some legislators who told acting Director Liza Estlund Olson during a House Oversight Committee meeting Thursday the Unemployment Insurance […]
Michigan redistricting panel saves metro Detroit for last. Is that a mistake?
by Sergio Martínez-Beltrán (Bridge Michigan) EAST LANSING — As Michigan’s redistricting commission drafts new legislative districts, some critics worry members aren’t devoting enough time to draw maps for the state’s most populous areas. The Michigan Independent Redistricting Commission has spent the last few weeks drawing drafts of state legislative districts in the Upper Peninsula, and […]
Required COVID vaccines put Michigan hospital worker hesitancy to the test
by Kelly House, Robin Erb (Bridge Michigan) The clock is ticking for Sharon Petty to decide whether she’ll submit to a COVID-19 vaccination or lose her job as a phlebotomist at Beaumont Hospital in Dearborn, but she said her mind is already made up. If her request for a religious exemption isn’t approved, Petty said, […]
Whitmer, GOP race toward budget deal as shutdown deadline looms in Michigan
by Jonathan Oosting(Bridge Michigan) LANSING — Legislative Republicans and Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer are racing to finalize a Michigan budget by the end of September and avoid a partial government shutdown. Both sides express optimism they’ll agree to terms by the constitutionally mandated Oct. 1 deadline, an annual process aided and complicated this year by […]
Michigan labs fear COVID test shortages. Will new mandates add to strain?
by Robin Erb (Bridge Michigan) Some Michigan laboratories could soon face shortages in COVID-19 testing supplies again, as delta-variant-fueled cases rise in the state and schools and businesses step up testing demands. President Biden’s announcement of broad vaccine mandates — which will force millions of workers to choose between a vaccine or regular testing — could […]
Lake Superior summer: Blue-green algae comes to a lake once believed immune
By Sharon Oosthoek, Great Lakes Now (For Bridge Michigan) On a calm morning in late summer 2019, Jim Bailey was kayaking on Lake Superior near Thunder Bay, Ontario, when he found himself paddling through thick green scum, the likes of which he’d never seen in those waters. Puzzled, he headed into the open bay where […]
Michigan’s largest public companies ‘encouraged’ by second-quarter rebound
By David Wilkins (Bridge Michigan) Michigan’s largest publicly traded companies have mounted a strong comeback since the COVID-19 pandemic sent them reeling last year. The latest corporate financial filings from the state’s biggest employers show their revenues in the second quarter (Q2) of this year rebounded to levels achieved in the same period in 2019 […]
Michigan student test scores slump, as COVID halts slow progress
by Ron French, Tracie Mauriello, Mike Wilkinson (Bridge Michigan) and Koby Levin (Chalkbeat) Test scores in Michigan schools slumped during the past academic year, as educators and students scrambled to adjust amid a once-in-a-century pandemic. Results released Tuesday from the M-STEP, the state’s federally-mandated standardized test given to students in grades 3-7, and similar tests given in grades […]
