Lansing Lines is presented in cooperation with MIRS, a Lansing-based news and information service.
$15.6M Contract For COVID-19 Test Kits Goes To Florida Company
The state awarded a $15.6 million contract to Orlando-based Abbott Rapid Dx North America to continue in-state COVID-19 testing.
The funding is coming from the federal government through the COVID Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity funds and must be spent by July 31, 2026, but Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) spokesperson Lynn Sutfin said there was no obligation to spend the funds if testing wasn’t needed.
“We continue to urge all Michigan residents to use the tools available to them to protect themselves and their families from all respiratory viruses. This includes taking preventative measures such as testing and getting vaccinated for influenza, COVID-19 and RSV,” Sutfin said.
She said DHHS has continued to make COVID-19 testing available for free at several testing sites, wellness centers and participating libraries across the state.
“Although demand for testing has decreased from the early years of the pandemic, it remains an important tool to help protect residents and their families from this virus with an average of 5,400 tests per month occurring in 2024,” Sutfin said.
A list of testing sites is available on the DHHS website and people can still get at-home testing kits mailed to them for free.
The number of COVID-19 cases and deaths was down to 1,372 in November with the peak in 2024 being 5,274 cases in September.
Court Case Against Healthcare Company On Hold After Bankruptcy Filing
The state’s lawsuit against Wellpath LLC is on hold after the health company’s parent company filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in a Texas federal court.
Ingham County Circuit Judge Joyce Draganchuk stayed the Department of Technology, Management and Budget and Michigan Department of Corrections’ lawsuit against Wellpath and Grand Prairie Healthcare Services on Thursday after being notified of the bankruptcy, according to court records.
The state sued Wellpath for breach of contract after the company failed to pay $35 million in medical bills, which led the state to drop the contract before it ended.
A message seeking comment from the Attorney General’s office, who represents DTMB and MDOC in the lawsuit, was not returned.
Efforts to reach Wellpath officials have not been successful.
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Southern District of Texas shows Wellpath Holdings Inc., based in Nashville, Tennessee, and owned by private equity firm H.I.G. Capital, filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy Nov. 11. A hearing is set Dec. 5 in a Houston, Texas, courtroom.
The healthcare company has more than 13,000 employees and is considered one of the largest healthcare providers to prisons and jails across the country.
Wellpath has seen substantial revenue growth since 2006, reporting more than $2.059 billion in revenue in 2022, according to court documents.
However, the company faced “escalating operating and labor costs, rising professional liability expenses, and underperforming contracts,” which reversed its annual 18% annual growth rate, according to a declaration filed by Timothy J. Dragelin, the company’s chief restructuring officer and chief financial officer.
Dragelin also blamed the COVID-19 pandemic, noting it “altered the healthcare landscape and imposed substantial costs on providers and mental health services,” due to medical supplies and bonuses, as well as retention programs to address labor shortages.
In Michigan, EMS providers allege Wellpath, formerly known as Correct Care Solutions, stuck them with a $6 million bill in unpaid health care services they’ve provided to the state’s prisons.
Webber Calls For Oversight Into DHHS On Heels Of DOJ Opening Investigation
Sen. Michael Webber (R-Rochester Hills) says Michigan’s state-run psychiatric hospitals have become “a black eye” and a serious liability issue for the state’s health department, continuing his call for oversight reform now that a federal investigation has been launched into such facilities.
On Nov. 13, the U.S. Department of Justice announced it opened an investigation under the American with Disabilities Act into whether the state unnecessarily institutionalizes adults with serious mental illness in state psychiatric hospitals, questioning if the state is offering the appropriate services dedicated to transitioning patients out of the hospitals.
Although in the Senate’s minority, Webber has been engaged with disability advocates and patient parents since spring 2023, particularly becoming concerned about the Northville-based Hawthorn Center for minors. Last summer, most young patients were transferred to the Walter P. Reuther Psychiatric Hospital for adults, where floors have been divided as a new $325 million facility is being built.
On a recent episode of the MIRS Monday podcast, Webber explained how he’s learned of patients losing “tremendous” amounts of weight, receiving claims from state employees that the weight loss was due to medication. He also learned of a daughter who was released and attempted to hang herself within the following week.
“I’m not a doctor, but from everything they were telling me, you got to get the medication right, and you got to get the discharge plan right,” Webber said. “And that’s where leadership comes in, and it’s just not happening in some of those instances.”
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) said in a statement it is “deeply committed to expanding access to quality behavioral health services and ensuring community-based and home-based supports are available for individuals when and where they need them.”
The statement went on to say the department has “invested in building community and home-based behavioral health services more than any previous administration and continues to work with other state agencies, community partners and families to expand and improve access to an array of behavioral health care services and resources across Michigan.”
Webber is spearheading two bills to address growing concern over patient rights and oversight at state-run psychiatric hospitals. A part of his vision is to reform the membership of the state committee overseeing the operations and discharge plans of the hospitals.
“The executive team members are maybe a little bit more … political,” Webber said. “I think a lot of what (we) see in some of the roadblocks that we’ve come up against with the department is they know that some of the stuff that’s happening at Hawthorn, now with Walter Reuther, is a black eye for the state.”
SB 1048 would prohibit any MDHHS executive office staff from being appointed to or serving on the state’s Recipient Rights Advisory Committee and add representatives from Disability Rights Michigan, Mental Health Association in Michigan and Arc Michigan as permanent standing members.
SB 1049 , sponsored by Sen. Rick Outman (R-Six Lakes) and co-sponsored by Webber, would require hospitals to give voluntarily hospitalized psychiatric patients written notice of their rights.
The DOJ will investigate whether the state fails to provide necessary community-based mental health services to enable people to transition from the state psychiatric hospitals and remain stable in the community.
“The Americans with Disabilities Act protects people’s right to receive mental health services in the community, rather than remaining in hospitals when they are ready to go home,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
“This investigation will assess whether Michigan is honoring the ADA’s promise that people with disabilities be served in the most integrated setting appropriate. The Civil Rights Division will continue to advocate for states to provide people with disabilities the services they need to avoid unnecessary institutionalization,” she added.
Michigan operates four inpatient psychiatric hospitals — Caro Psychiatric Hospital; Center for Forensic Psychiatry in Saline; Kalamazoo Psychiatric Hospital and Walter Reuther Psychiatric Hospital in Westland.
As Webber hopes the bills receive a hearing in the Legislature’s final days, he thinks of a mother he talked to at the Detroit Zoo’s Autism Hero Walk in September. She has two kids on the autism spectrum, and she’s worried about both losing weight while they’re in the psychiatric hospital.
“I feel for a lot of these parents because they’re between a rock and a hard place. They want to get services for their kids. In a lot of cases, they have to give up their parental rights to get the services that they need,” he said. “I could not fathom making that decision as a parent myself.”
Webber said he believes he does have allies in the House Republican Caucus who will move the bills next year when their majority becomes effective, specifically thinking of Rep. Jamie Thompson (R-Brownstown).
Thompson participated in a town hall Webber hosted in spring 2023 in Rochester Hills. She listened to parents like Amy Carter, who worked for eight months to get her son a placement in Hawthorn. She said she was upset to discover that his experience was “very traumatic,” spending more than a week sleeping on a mat on the floor, waking up to “moldy rain water” hitting his head and body.
Her son, Jayden, said on numerous occasions, the staff told him he was being prepared for prison or jail during his adulthood. He said he’s filed with the advisory council numerous times, claiming he’s been choked out and has had his face “bashed into the ground by staff members.”
There is additionally a report from the Office of the Auditor General – the Legislature’s auditing arm – anticipated to be released early next year.
He said if the Senate’s majority isn’t going to take the bills and report them, “We need to kind of get it moving on the House side” for 2025.
Sex Ed Updates Move Away From Morality To Science-Based Facts
Sex education in public schools would move away from the “no-sex-before-marriage” morality message to one stressing medical realities, affirmative consent and inclusiveness of those of different sexual orientations and identities, under bills introduced last week.
HB 6068 , sponsored by Rep. Rachel Hood (D-Grand Rapids) and Rep. Laurie Pohutsky (D-Livonia), would give the state’s sex education its first brushup since 2004 by replacing references in state law to “family planning” and “family life” with “sexual and reproductive health care” and “sexual health.”
Unlike the current law, it addresses contraception and “accessing sexual and reproductive health resources,” such as abortion services. The proposal not only demystifies sex, pregnancy and outcomes, but mandates discussion on sex trafficking, rape and sexual assault.
“Comprehensive sex education goes beyond just teaching the fundamentals, it will equip Michigan’s young people with knowledge needed to foster healthy relationships, understand consent and make good choices,” Hood said. “HB 6068 would ensure that sex education standards align with the current needs of our state.”
The bill would also mandate that at least two students be members of a local school district advisory board. It strikes the requirement that clergy be on the board.
A message in current law that abstinence is a “positive lifestyle for unmarried young people” is also scratched under the proposal.
Nupar Huria, from the Michigan Organization on Adolescent Sexual Health (MOASH), and Corey Harbaugh, director of curriculum and instruction at Paw Paw Public Schools were among those who spoke in support of the bill during last week’s press conference.
Huria said without quality sex education instruction, students are left to scour the internet for answers, some of which is accurate, but much of it is not.
“Failing to pass this bill would be a disservice to Michigan’s youth, leaving them unprepared to navigate today’s challenges around consent, digital safety and making informed decisions about their health and safety,” said Taryn Gal, executive director at MOASH.
The bill was referred to the House Education Committee, where Republican committee member Rep. Greg Markkanen (R-Hancock) predicted a chilly reception from his side of the aisle.
As a former K-14 teacher in the Upper Peninsula, Markkanen said he believes the bill goes “way beyond what is needed in our public schools” by at least planting the seed in teenagers’ minds to engage in promiscuous behavior.
“I know everyone up here is going to be dead set against it,” he said. “A majority of conservative Michiganders and Yoopers aren’t going to like encouraging our 13, 14 and 15-year-old daughters to get the morning-after pill after they’ve had sex.”
Only Some Medicaid Plans Cover Menstrual Products
LANSING—A new U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report outlines how menstrual products are not covered under traditional Medicaid health care plans, but in some instances there is partial coverage under managed care plans.
Catina Latham, director of the GAO health care team, said some insurance companies have managed care plans that voluntarily offer coverage. Those that choose to do so can request a waiver from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that allows them to cover these services.
The GAO review found at least 25 states, including Michigan, have at least one Medicaid managed care plan that covers a range of menstrual care and over-the-counter or personal care items, Latham said. “This coverage was not offered by all the plans in each of these states.”
According to the report, Michigan offers over-the-counter and personal care item coverage of $25 per month. It includes dental care products and first aid care, as well as feminine care products,
Andrea Kerubski, vice president of Bellwether Public Relations, which represents the Michigan Association of Health Plans, said the state Department of Health and Human Services could seek federal approval to add this benefit to its Medicaid program, but to date has not done so.
“Legislative efforts to mandate such coverage have been introduced but not passed,” Kerbuski said.
Karley Abramson, a research associate for the Citizens Research Council of Michigan, said that in addition to things like the pink tax, which exempts feminine hygiene products from the 6% state sales tax, parts of Michigan have tried to provide free menstrual products.
“Michigan could do a state mandate for that. About 27 states total have enacted legislation that does require the provisions of free menstrual products,” said Abramson. “Usually this is located either in prisons or schools or homeless shelters or other isolated locations.”
According to the Alliance for Period Supplies, a 2023-24 school year pilot program provided approximately $1 million from the state School Aid Fund for period products in schools for eight participating school districts throughout Michigan.
According to the Legislature, each eligible or at-risk student must receive at least 20 tampons or menstrual pads each month for the school year.
Birthing Center Licensure Bill Labors In Committee
Legislation requiring a state licensure process for birthing centers generated some push back in committee from independently operating midwives, who say the extra set of regulations may drive them out of business.
HB 5636 is designed to allow birthing centers, such as Birth Detroit, to receive Medicaid dollars from expecting mothers who don’t have insurance and want to give birth in a more natural setting.
Rep. Laurie Pohutsky (D-Livonia) told the House Health Policy Committee that her bill addresses a “maternal and infant health crisis, particularly among Black and brown pregnant women.”
Midwives in Michigan were licensed starting in 2016, but birth centers, themselves, are not. Outside of not being able to get Medicaid dollars, getting private insurance to reimburse for delivery costs can prove very difficult, she said.
The new license would mean two people need to be present for a birth, and it comes with a new fee.
“The heart of this bill comes down to this,” Pohutsky told the committee. “People should be able to give birth where they feel safest and most supported, and their income should not limit their choices. Creating a licensure pathway for birth centers ensures that facilities who have clients who are unable to pay on their own without insurance can receive the same level of care as those facilities who have patients that can pay out of pocket, while also ensuring the appropriate guidelines are in place for a safe birthing experience.”
Midwives in rural Michigan pushed back by claiming the current licensure process has increased safety and passing the new bill would limit their scope of practice.
Midwife Heather Lemanski said she had planned to open a freestanding birth center in Port Huron, but she no longer plans to do so because of the bill.
“Additional licensure, additional regulations and expenses will ultimately lead to less freestanding birth centers in Michigan,” Lemanski said.
Also, Lemanski said having to have extra staff on call to assist during a birth would be unaffordable for her small business.
Republicans on the committee, including Rep. Jamie Thompson (R-Brownstown), who has worked as a doula, expressed concerns about requiring vaccinations and referring to the patients under the law as “individuals” as opposed to “women.”
Responding to this testimony was Nicole White from Birth Detroit, who said Michigan is one of nine states that do not license birth centers.
Without this bill, women who can’t pay out of pocket for this service would be shut out. She mentioned a friend in Petoskey who tried to create a birthing center Up North, but didn’t have enough customers who could pay without insurance or Medicaid.
Apps Could Not Sell Reproductive Health Data Without Consent Under McMorrow Bill
Residents could not have their “reproductive health data” processed for information or sold to other businesses without consenting specifically to it, under legislation by Sen. Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak), which received committee testimony.
SB 1082 deals with the digital privacy of Michiganders’ reproductive health information. The definition ranges from their use of menstrual cycle and fertility trackers to abortion-related services and counseling. Additionally, the bill outlaws geofencing based on a resident’s trip to a sexual health clinic or abortion facility.
Geofencing uses cellular and WiFi data as well as cell tower connectivity, and is depended upon for location-based marketing strategies. Under SB 1082 , geofencing could not be utilized to identify or track individuals seeking “reproductive health services,” or to send notifications or ads based on someone being within 1,850 feet from a relevant location.
“So let’s say you use a period tracker app, there would be a very clear, in simple English notification that would pop up for you, that asks you for affirmative consent for the use of your data, and it would spell out how it’s used,” McMorrow said, explaining how the consumer’s experience would change under SB 1082 .
She described that her legislation deals with apps, purchases and geofencing.
“It’s really just making sure that any data that you provide, whether it’s to an app, a phone or just where you are in the world, is not being sold to outside companies or government entities without your clear consent that that’s OK,” she said. “I think this is, at least in my mind, how we can start digging into how we protect Michiganders’ data in an issue area that is…highly sensitive, highly personal and highly charged right now, given the political environment.”
McMorrow nodded to former President Donald Trump’s recent reelection. Although Trump in April explained that the abortion issue should be determined at the state-level through votes or legislation, Democrats have spent the recent election cycle trying to link Trump to fears of a federal abortion ban or strenuous restrictions.
Earlier this month, Newsweek reported on the team behind the Clue Period & Cycle Tracker, which is a free app, claiming on social media they “will never disclose any member’s private health data to any authority,” promising to not comply if ever subpoenaed.
SB 1082 creates the “reproductive health data privacy act” in Michigan, requiring consent to be obtained virtually through a form separate from a broad terms-of-use agreement.
The consent will be needed for businesses – like app developers with Michigan users – to collect and process data for reasons that they reveal upfront. Beginning after June 2025, consent will be required for those businesses to sell the data.
If the act is reportedly violated, the Attorney General could seek out $100 to $750 in court-ordered relief “per incident or actual damages.”
During today’s Senate Housing and Human Services Committee meeting, Dr. Catherine Gorant GLIWA, an Ann Arbor-based obstetrician and gynecologist, said her patients coming in for menopause symptoms, period irregularities and positive pregnancy tests “use technology in many ways.”
Gliwa illustrated how, a few weeks ago, a woman visited her due to menstrual cycle concerns. Gilwa used data her patient was gathering through a period tracker app to order tests and treatment. What Gilwa’s patient shared with her is shielded by the federal privacy statute, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
But her patient “might not have known that HIPAA does not apply to the information that she puts into her app, and she likely did not know that using the app puts her privacy at risk.”
She added that Michigan’s abortion providers often see out-of-state patients where abortion access is not a state-constitutional right. Two weeks ago, Gliwa administered abortion services to a Texan woman, who she said likely didn’t know her location could be tracked through her phone.
“Without the protections of our state provided by this bill, she could be targeted next,” Gilwa said.
However, those cautious of SB 1082 argue that the bill’s language and definitions are not yet ready for real life.
For example, Tyler Diers, the Midwest executive director of TechNet – an information technology and ecommerce network group – recommended that the “scope of applicability,” as well as data and services dealt with under the bill, be narrowed.
“The scope of reproductive health data and services may capture many routine over-the-counter purchases and subscription services,” Diers said. “Businesses would be forced to mitigate the risks of litigation by increasing consent notifications and outright prohibiting certain offerings in the state.”
Following today’s meeting, McMorrow clarified that SB 1082 was introduced last week and there’s still work being done on a “thorough” substitute.
She hopes that as more states take on tackling the issue of data privacy, the federal government will be forced to take action.
“Given this is lame duck, and we have a few weeks left, we’re trying to run what we can run and get it done,” McMorrow said.
Tobacco Retailers May Need To Obtain License To Sell
A total of 27% of Michigan tobacco shop sales are to minors, according to Rep. Stephanie Young (D-Detroit). She said an estimate of thousands more go unreported in the state.
HB 6002 , HB 6003 , HB 6004 and HB 6005 strengthen Michigan’s tobacco laws, including mandating tobacco shops to obtain a license to sell and removing criminal penalties for minors who possess tobacco products.
Rep. Abraham Aiyash (D-Hamtramck), who also testified in favor of the bill package to the Families, Children and Seniors Committee, said Michigan is one of the 10 states in the country that does not have a tobacco registration program. The bills didn’t move out of committee last month.
“You need a license to tattoo people. You need a license to sell Christmas trees. You need a license to do someone’s nails. You do not need a license to sell tobacco in the state of Michigan,” Aiyash said.
He said HB 6002 and HB 6003 would create a database where the state can keep track of legal tobacco retailers so they can “hone in on bad actors.” The fee for the license would be an annual charge of $500.
The fees would go towards investigating and penalizing tobacco shops who knowingly sell to minors, he said. He said shops who use a good-faith effort to not sell to minors would not be penalized.
Young said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer “took aggressive action” to issue emergency rules to ban the sale of flavored air products and misleading marketing when vapes first became popular in Michigan.
“The emergency rules expired, and the legislature never took action to make any of these rules permanent,” Young said.
Young said Michigan “routinely earns failing grades” from the American Lung Association and the Preventing Tobacco Addiction Foundation for policies that have been proven to reduce tobacco use.
Tobacco use is 30% higher in Michigan than other parts of the country, and cancer rates are 32% higher, said Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids Regional Advocacy Director Jodi Radke. She said Michigan is currently out of federal compliance by not requiring tobacco retailers to be licensed.
Midwest Independent Retailers Vice President Jerry Griffin spoke in opposition of the bill package, saying creating a license with “a substantial fee” would not combat underage vaping.
Griffin also said that a portion of tax revenue generated from tobacco sales could be redirected towards funds for enforcing penalties for underage sales instead of requiring store owners to pay an annual license fee.