The election cycle can be emotionally draining, but there are steps people can take to protect their mental health, including limiting news consumption and putting an end to doom-scrolling.
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
Michigan needs doctors more than ever. More medical schools haven’t helped
Universities have aggressively expanded medical schools with the hope that could curb a looming doctor shortage. Instead, the shortage worsened as newly licensed doctors left Michigan.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Primary-care doctor shortages cut deep in Michigan's underserved areas
More than 1 in 4 Michiganders live in an area with a shortage of health providers. Primary care is among the worst hit.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
$1M grant gives Michigan foster kids rides to school as they switch homes
Foster youth face countless disruptions and fractured relationships, as they move from home to home. A new state grant helps them maintain connections and classroom continuity.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Free COVID tests return in time for Michigan’s respiratory disease season
The nation’s health department has distributed 900 million free at-home COVID tests since winter 2021. It restarted the program Thursday.
Posted inMichigan Government
Crime fact check: Violence fell in ‘23, but still high in many Michigan cities
FBI crime stats released this week show violent crime fell in many Michigan cities but still remains higher than 2020. Different data sets, though, allow Trump, Harris to make their case to suit their views.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Michigan repurposes COVID testing sites to reduce health disparities
The state is spending $17 million to expand 22 sites into wellness centers to provide preventive care in an effort to curb racial disparities in health outcomes.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
As marijuana stigma fades, 1 in 4 older Michiganders say they use pot
A national poll finds that Michiganders 50 years or older are more likely than their counterparts in other states to turn to cannabis products. They also are more likely to report signs of addiction.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
How does Michigan use its opioid dollars? Here’s how Bridge found out
Without a central reporting requirement, Michiganders can be left in the dark at how their communities are using funds to combat the drug crisis. Bridge’s investigation is the most exhaustive to date.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Amid drug crisis, one Michigan city is using money to help backfill budget
Farmington Hills has used about $120,000 from an opioid lawsuit settlement to repay itself for past drug-fighting costs. Almost all other cities are using the money to help current users or future drug-fighting efforts.