In metro Detroit, the epicenter of Michigan’s outbreak, the pandemic is spreading rapidly as hospitals, government leaders and residents deal with medical shortages and some painful goodbyes.
Robin Erb
Robin Erb covers a range of health issues in Michigan, including the industry of aging and the issues facing older residents in Michigan, a state that is aging faster than most others. She joined Bridge in 2019 and has led investigations that tracked millions of dollars in opioid settlement money and explored severe worker shortages in health care that threaten lives and the state's economy. She chronicled the shock and grief of Michigan families in COVID’s wake, as well as state policy decisions and the triumphs of medical breakthroughs. Robin previously spent six years covering health at the Detroit Free Press, documenting the battle over, and the eventual passage of, the Affordable Care Act and Michigan's Medicaid expansion. She studied communications and political science at Miami University and has a master’s degree in organizational leadership from Lourdes University (Toledo, Ohio). She and her husband raised two wonderful children — but have failed miserably at training their Beagle-Bassets — in southeast Michigan. Reach her at rerb@bridgemi.com.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
In metro Detroit, coronavirus deaths spike overnight amid ventilator need
Oakland County executive Dave Coulter issued a call for masks and ventilators at the beginning of what he called “the most challenging week yet.”
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Coronavirus, an ‘almost perfect killing machine,’ hits Michigan nursing homes
COVID-19 has breached the walls at Michigan nursing homes, where vulnerable residents are at risk because of tight quarters, a shortage of supplies and low-paid workers. In Macomb County, one home is begging for help.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Khaldun: Michigan has coronavirus testing supplies ‘through another week'
State’s remains in “dire need” of supplies. For every infected patient, hospitals need 10 specialized N95 masks, Michigan’s chief medical executive, Joneigh Khaldun, told Bridge.
Posted inMichigan Government
Trump grants some disaster aid to Michigan; state also gets N95 masks
Disaster package loosens federal funds to help cover costs related to COVID-19 — from medical supplies to personal protective equipment to child care.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Detroit hospital: We’re nowhere near ‘worst-case’ coronavirus decisions
Henry Ford Health System reassures patients and public following the release of an ethics guideline that discusses who should get ventilators during the coronavirus pandemic. Other hospitals have similar policies.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Separated in their own home, a Michigan family adjusts to coronavirus
A Canton Township family endures a week of sadness, frustration and surprising moments of joy after a diagnosis of COVID-19 and self-quarantine.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Detroit hospital warns some coronavirus patients may not get ventilators
Guidelines by Henry Ford Health System are leaked onto social media detailing how the sickest patients may not get ventilator care. The draft letter outlines an ‘absolute worst-case scenario’ that hospital officials say has not yet come.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Coronavirus spreading faster in Detroit than nearly anywhere in United States
Detroit, which faces a host of challenges, is the ‘epicenter’ of Michigan’s coronavirus outbreak. Some attribute that to testing. Others say city residents are more susceptible. All agree the rise burdens folks who are already suffering.
Posted inQuality of Life
Michigan adjusts to strange, empty world of coronavirus lockdown
From empty streets to locked stores, Michigan residents awoke Tuesday morning to a state desperately trying to slow the spread of a potentially deadly virus.