Part nurse, part detective: A day in the life of a Michigan contact tracer
by Kelly House (Bridge) Christina Zilke’s first interaction with her patients is often unpleasant. As a contact tracer with the Washtenaw County Health Department, she must ask them to relive the onset of an illness that has made them a statistic in a global pandemic. Zilke knows how important it is to interview COVID-19 patients […]
Michigan launches coronavirus contact tracing. Here’s what you need to know.
by Kelly House, Riley Beggin (Bridge) Successfully reopening Michigan’s economy requires government officials to know who has COVID-19 — and to whom they could have spread it. Without that, health experts say, reopening the state may be a major gamble marked by waves of new infections spread by people who don’t yet know they’re sick. As […]
GOP-led Legislature sues Michigan Gov. Whitmer over emergency powers
by Jonathan Oosting (Bridge) LANSING — Republican legislators filed suit against Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Wednesday alleging her attempt to unilaterally extend emergency declarations amid the COVID-19 crisis is illegal, “absurd,” unconstitutional and “nonsensical.” GOP leaders are asking the Michigan Court of Claims for an immediate ruling declaring that Whitmer’s emergency orders, including her stay-at-home and business closure […]
Tribal casinos may be headed for clash with Whitmer, Nessel over reopening
by Meghanlata Gupta, Ron French (Bridge) Some Michigan tribal casinos are making plans to open as early as May 16, setting up a possible showdown with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Attorney General Dana Nessel, who fear crowds at slot machines could spread the coronavirus. How the state will respond to the planned openings isn’t known yet; […]
Gun ban at Michigan Capitol unlikely, despite urging from Dana Nessel
by Jonathan Oosting (Bridge) Scenes of armed demonstrators towering over lawmakers during a protest at the Michigan Capitol two weeks ago have prompted calls to ban firearms inside the historic building and thrust a little-known commission into the middle of the debate. But Michigan Capitol Commission members, a majority of whom serve at the pleasure of leadership […]
Q&A with Brian Calley: 1 in 7 Michigan small businesses worry about survival
by Paula Gardner (Bridge) One in seven small businesses in Michigan may not survive the COVID-19 pandemic and related closure orders, their owners warn in a survey released this week. “Michigan small businesses are truly struggling to survive,” said Brian Calley, president of the Small Business Association of Michigan. The survey, conducted in late April of […]
‘There is no playbook’ for Michigan’s businesses to navigate COVID-19
by David Wilkins (Bridge) One statistic that does not show up in CMS Energy’s financial statement points to the unmapped road Michigan businesses are traveling due to the global pandemic. “At this time, we’ve experienced zero fatalities,” CEO Patti Poppe said during the utility’s first-quarter earnings call on April 27. She went on to cite […]
Treatment and trials go on, but Michigan doctors split on coronavirus drug
by Kate Wells, Michigan Radio; Robin Erb, Kelly House (Bridge) Thousands of people are being recruited to participate in southeast Michigan clinical trials — touted as among the largest in the country — to test the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine in the battle against COVID-19. But since a 3,000-person Detroit trial was announced April 2, an increasing […]
Michigan roads still stink, and the coronavirus makes them harder to fix
by Jonathan Oosting (Bridge) LANSING — Michigan roads are still bad, its bridges are getting worse, and the coronavirus pandemic is poised to take a chunk out of the gas tax revenue needed to fix them. Annual road ratings released Thursday showed only minor condition improvements across the state between 2018 and 2019 after a modest bump […]
Whitmer extends Michigan emergency to May 28, as GOP threatens lawsuit
by Jonathan Oosting (Bridge) LANSING — A dramatic standoff between Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Republican lawmakers over her emergency powers during the coronavirus pandemic appears headed to the courts after a dizzying day at the Michigan Capitol. Late Thursday, Whitmer signed new declarations extending Michigan’s state of emergency until May 28, and continued the closure […]
