How a rural west Michigan hospital community leans on each other to weather the pandemic — and finds itself lifted by the community.
Rural Michigan
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Aging and isolated, rural northern Michigan braces for coronavirus
Alcona County has high rates of diabetes, heart disease and other illnesses and hardly a doctor in sight. Residents here are particularly susceptible to COVID-19, when it hits.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Rural Michigan hospitals say coronavirus crisis may soon force some to close
Many small or rural hospitals were already struggling before COVID-19 forced them to halt the elective procedures that help pay the bills. They are looking largely toward the government to help them recover lost revenue.
Posted inBusiness Watch
Coronavirus shutdown could leave 1 in 4 jobless in northern Michigan
Already gearing for a recession, Michigan faces billions of dollars in lost wages and tens of thousands of job cuts. Using maps and charts, Bridge explains how the impact of the coronavirus shutdown will vary widely by industry and maps.
Posted inTalent & Education
A Michigan school bus turns food truck during coronavirus school shutdown
In one sparsely populated, vast Northern Michigan school district, school buses are delivering meals to students who otherwise might go hungry amid a three-week shutdown of the state’s schools.
Posted inBusiness Watch
Why Michigan cherry industry lost trade fight with Turkey, and its Plan B
The U.S. International Trade Commission flatly rejected claims that Turkish imports hurt domestic dried tart cherry processors. But Michigan’s cherry industry has a new line of attack against imports.
Posted inMichigan Government
Rural Michigan to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer: What about us?
Beset with common but daunting problems, leaders in rural Michigan implore Michigan’s Democratic governor to create a Cabinet-level post to address their concerns.
Posted inMichigan Government
Along Michigan-Ohio border, small-town Morenci is transformed by marijuana
Once a frontier town dominated by agriculture, Morenci now finds itself on a new frontier, with the scent of pot wafting through its streets. Despite reluctance from “conservative farm folks,” most support the financial boost the industry has brought.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Michigan county threatens to bulldoze Amish homes in poop dispute
An Amish community, with help from the ACLU, argues that Lenawee County is violating its religious freedom by demanding it stop using outhouses and spreading human waste in fields. Local residents are backing the Amish.
Posted inMichigan Government
Michigan Republican pushes to deregulate health care. Some hospitals call foul.
A GOP legislative package would remove barriers to small rural hospitals expanding or offering some of the same services as larger hospitals in the region. Both sides say their vision would lower costs.