May 9th, 20200DETROIT— The reality of the global health crisis has brought with it a grave and unprecedented economic crisis in a few short months. In the U.S., state and federal bureaucracies, unemployment agencies and research institutes scramble to understand the breadth and magnitude of the effects of economic closures on both workers and...
May 7th, 20200DETROIT – The 1,000-bed TCF Center field hospital in the city's downtown is no longer caring for COVID-19 patients and is "officially closed down," Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said Thursday.
At most, the care center inside the convention center cared for about 15 to 20 patients at any given time, the mayor said during an afternoon...
May 7th, 20200LANSING — On Thursday, Governor Whitmer signed Executive Order 2020-77 to extend Michigan’s "Stay Home, Stay Safe" order to May 28. The governor’s order will allow manufacturing workers, including those at Michigan’s Big Three auto companies, to resume work on Monday, May 11 as part of her MI Safe Start Plan.
“This is...
May 6th, 20200
LANSING — On Wednesday, Governor Whitmer signed Executive Order 2020-76, expediting the unemployment benefits process during the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. The most significant takeaway from this development: The state will now only look at an unemployed individual's most recent job separation, which is the cause of the...
May 6th, 20200While there have been multiple reports of Asian giant hornets attacking beehives in Washington, it will be years before they spread to the Midwest according to a board certified entomologist.
Dubbed “Murder Hornets” by researchers, the species has a venomous sting that can kill a human if they are stung several times.
The hornets...
May 4th, 20200LANSING — Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Director Robert Gordon issued an Emergency Order today that shortens the time frame hospitals and funeral directors have to contact individuals with authority over disposition of the body of a deceased individual and the amount of time that individual has to make a...
May 4th, 20200DEARBORN — Dearborn Public Schools has officially postponed high school graduations scheduled for early June and early college ceremonies set for May.
“As we continue to see encouraging signs that social distancing and other preventative measures ordered by the governor are making a difference in slowing the spread of COVID-19,...
May 1st, 20200
LANSING - Today, at a press conference with members from health care industry, business, and labor, Governor Whitmer signed Executive Order 2020-70 as part of her "MI Safe Start" plan. The executive order will allow the May 7 resumption of some types of work that present a very low risk of infection, including construction,...
April 30th, 20201LANSING — On Thursday, after the Republican-controlled Michigan legislature all but declared victory in their battle to reopen the economy and effectively end Governor Whitmer’s emergency powers, Whitmer took swift and decisive action by signing four new executive orders to continue fighting COVID-19 and the save lives of...
April 30th, 20200LANSING — State officials are urging Michiganders to be look for help if they’re struggling to pay their utility bills by reaching out to their energy providers and seeking financial assistance if they’ve lost a job or their income has dropped amid the coronavirus pandemic.
State leaders encourage anyone facing financial...
April 29th, 20200LANSING — While the U.S. Department of Justice seeks probes into the constitutionality of lock-down orders in various states, including Michigan, Lansing announced on Wednesday a Michigan Court of Claims ruling that sided with Governor Whitmer, holding that the current “Stay Home, Stay Safe” executive order did not infringe upon...
April 29th, 20200
LANSING — On Wednesday, Governor Whitmer announced a series of initiatives to help Michigan workers and their families during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, including the "Futures for Frontliners” program to provide a tuition-free pathway to college or a technical certificate to essential workers who don’t have a...
April 27th, 20200LANSING — On Monday, Governor Whitmer signaled her broad and long-term plan for the gradual reopening of the state’s economy. Strict isolation and shutdown measures have thus far proven markedly successful, as hospitals and county health department report plateauing numbers of COVID-19 related cases in Michigan.
Whitmer was...
April 23rd, 20200LANSING - The Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA) has released tallies for benefits given out to unemployed workers in Michigan as a consequence of the COVID-19 outbreak in the state. The UIA said it has provided an estimated 820,000 unemployed Michigan workers $1.37 billion in benefits, an unprecedented number. The agency...
April 21st, 20200LANSING — As part of efforts to continue expanding COVID-19 testing and contact tracing of potentially exposed Michiganders, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) again expanded its testing criteria to include all essential workers still reporting to work in person, whether they have symptoms or not, and...
April 21st, 20202DEARBORN — Governor Whitmer announced on Monday further expansion of state-wide testing sites and capabilities. Part of this expansion is a partnership between the state and CVS Health, which will provide rapid, drive-through COVID-19 testing in Dearborn.
According to Whitmer's office, testing will be conducted in the parking lot...
April 19th, 20201LANSING — After Wednesday's "Operation Gridlock" protests made national news, Lansing's Mayor Andy Schor is promising tough measures on any future protest that fail to correctly observe CDC social distancing guideline and openly violate Governor Whitemer's "Stay Home, Stay Safe" order.
The protesters gathered Wednesday afternoon...
April 14th, 20200LANSING — The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) has announced it is expanding testing criteria for Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) to include individuals with mild symptoms, and has published a COVID-19 test site finder at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus to help Michiganders locate a testing site near...
April 13th, 20200DEARBORN - The Arab American News spoke to Dr. Joneigh Khaldun on Monday morning about the state of COVID-19 in Michigan. Khaldun is the chief medical executive and chief deputy director for health for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS).
Many in the state may now be familiar with Khaldun, who joins Governor...
April 10th, 20200LANSING - The Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS) announced that the state has received agreements from nearly all of the state’s health insurance companies to waive cost-sharing, including copays, deductibles, and coinsurance for coronavirus (COVID-19) testing and treatments. The Whitmer Administration and...
April 9th, 20200DETROIT - When Dr. Mahmoud Al-Hadidi, a physician specializing in pulmonary intensive care, noticed there was a drastic need for medical supplies and food for frontline healthcare workers in southeast Michigan fighting the terrible COVID-19 disease, he rose to the challenge.
Hadidi, who practices medicine at a prominent hospital in...
April 9th, 20200LANSING — Michigan has become the first state in the country to gain federal approval for a program that will provide nutritious food to children who were affected by school closings due to COVID-19. The Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer Program (P-EBT) provides temporary funding to address emergency food needs and avert financial...
April 9th, 20200LANSING — After signing the latest order extending the previous “stay home” order till the end of April, Governor Whitmer went live to speak on what this new development means for Michiganders. She joined Michigan’s chief medical executive, Dr. Janeigh Khaldoun, to emphasize that staying home and following distancing guidelines...
April 7th, 20200LANSING — Michiganders who lose a job, resulting in a loss of their healthcare coverage or a change in income, may have low or no-cost healthcare options available through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace, Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Consumers in these situations are not required to wait for...
April 6th, 20200DEARBORN – Under Governor Whitmer’s “Stay Home, Stay Safe” executive order, residents are reminded that they are prohibited from being able to gather with those who do not live in their household, to reduce the potential spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.
The governor’s executive order states, with some narrow...
April 6th, 20200NOVI — Michigan has selected the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi as the site of a second alternate care facility to expand medical capacity during the state’s response to COVID-19. This decision comes days after Governor Whitmer announced the state’s first alternate care facility at the TCF Center in Detroit.
After...
April 6th, 20200LANSING - On Monday, Governor Whitmer warned of shortage in major hospitals in Michigan amid a week of increasing COVID-19 cases in the state and said the state is now looking to expand the “stay home” order past its April end-date.
Speaking from her capital office on Monday, April 6, Whitmer said the state was running...
April 3rd, 20200DEARBORN — A strange yet familiar scene plays out at grocery stores in Dearborn on most days, one that has been commonplace since the outbreak of COVID-19 in the state reached a critical level.
Customers stand in line outside the double door, waiting for an employee in a face mask and gloves to let them in one at a time. At...
