On Mar 2, the Board of Education conducted a regular meeting in the Shirley M. Rodgers Administration Bldg. 519 W. Kalamazoo St, Lansing. The Action Items section of the meeting focused on Interagency Agreement which the Board of Education partnered with the Ingham County Health Department to provide high school students in Lansing healthcare service.
Business & Economy
Schools adapt to free meals for all students
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SCHOOL MEALS: School districts are adapting to the mandate to offer free breakfasts and lunches to all students, regardless of income. The state is paying for the initiative. They say hungry students don’t learn well, and that students who can’t afford to pay for meals feel stigmatized. We talk to school lunch experts in Marquette, Oakland County and Traverse City. By Alex Walters. FOR TRAVERSE CITY, DETROIT, MARQUETTE, MICHIGAN FARM NEWS AND ALL POINTS.
Health
Michigan nurses’ burnout is a health emergency, study says
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NURSES BURNOUT: Nearly 94% of the state’s registered nurses surveyed report burnout from their jobs, including heavy workloads, long hours and unfavorable working conditions, according to a U-M study. Almost 10% have thought about self-harm. We learn more from a co-author of the study, a Jackson County public health official, the Sparrow Hospital chief nursing officer and an Oakland University nursing program director. By Owen McCarthy. FOR DETROIT, LANSING CITY PULSE, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL AND ALL POINTS.
Elections & Politics
Proposal would ease access to hormonal contraceptives
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ACCESS TO CONTRACEPTIVES: Some lawmakers, including ones from Livonia and Holt, are again pushing legislation to allow pharmacists to sell hormonal contraceptives without a prescription. Advocates say that would expand women’s access to reproductive health care. The Michigan Health & Hospital Association expresses concerns about how the bill is worded. By Sophia Ceru. FOR DETROIT, CORP! GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS, LANSING CITY PULSE AND ALL POINTS.
Agriculture
Some want Michigan to regulate septic tanks to protect water qualityÂ
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SEPTIC: Environmental groups are again pushing the Legislature to adopt a statewide sanitary code that would include mandatory inspections of septic systems. Leaking systems can contaminate groundwater, lakes and rivers, causing health problems and deterring water-related recreation. Sponsors include lawmakers from East Grand Rapids, Troy, Detroit, Holt, Walker, St. Joseph and Livonia. We talk to the Michigan Environmental Council, Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council and a Montmorency County homeowner with a septic tank. By Elijah Taub. FOR MICHIGAN FARM NEWS, MONTMORENCY, ALPENA, PETOSKEY, HARBOR SPRINGS, CHEBOYGAN, DETROIT, GREENVILLE, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS, FOWLERVILLE, STURGIS, THREE RIVERS AND ALL POINTS.
Diversity Issues
Lawmaker wants baby boxes at fire stations to protect unwanted newborns
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A lawmaker from Erie wants to allow baby drop boxes at fire stations to speed the process of adoption of unwanted newborns who are left there anonymously. Neighboring Ohio and Indiana already have baby drop box laws. Cosponsors include lawmakers from Osseo, Milford, Lake Odessa, Clare and Shelby Township. The Michigan Health and Hospital Association opposes the bill. By Sophia Ceru. FOR MONROE, ADRIAN, BLISSFIELD, HILLSDALE, DETROIT, CLARE COUNTY, IONIA, GREENVILLE, STURGIS, THREE RIVERS, LUDINGTON, LAKE COUNTY, COLDWATER AND ALL POINTS.
Business & Economy
Michigan hasn’t updated list of dangerous toxins in nearly 20 years. That might change
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TOXINS: The state has been stymied in adding new toxic chemicals to the list of those it can regulate in Michigan waters. Lawmakers from West Bloomfield and Northfield Township want to restore that authority to the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy. We hear from EGLE, the Farm Bureau and the Michigan Environmental Council. By Theo Scheer. FOR MICHIGAN FARM NEWS, DETROIT, PLANET DETROIT, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS AND ALL POINTS.
Education
“That should horrify everybody in this community”: Lead found in water, dust particles in Okemos Public Schools
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Parents and teachers expressed their concerns over the recent lead discovery found in several classrooms at Okemos Public Montessori at Central, an elementary school within the Okemos Public School District. Repeated testing found lead in both the drinking water and dust particles in various classrooms across OPM, and on Jan. 22 several teachers, parents, and community members spoke at the biweekly meeting of the Okemos Board of Education. A two-part test first took place on Oct. 19 and Nov.
Health
Michigan still sees tuberculosis cases, but public health efforts keep numbers low
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TUBERCULOSIS: The number of TB cases diagnosed in the state rose last year compared to 2022, the latest Department of Health and Human Services data shows. The department says there’s no need to worry because annual fluctuations are normal. Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties had the most cases. By Anish Topowala. FOR DETROIT AND ALL POINTS.
Business & Economy
Michigan lags in preventing tobacco use but more funds, new laws could change that
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TOBACCO MONEY: Michigan isn’t doing well in its anti-tobacco initiatives and spending, the American Lung Association says. The governor wants to boost spending, and some lawmakers want tighter controls over the sale of tobacco products. We talked to Health & Human Services, the Michigan unit of the American Cancer Society and an East Lansing lawmaker. Includes references to anti-tobacco programs by groups in Detroit and Grand Rapids and legislators from Metro Detroit and Flint. By Liz Nass. FOR DETROIT, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS, GREENVILLE, LANSING CITY PULSE, WKTV AND ALL POINTS.
Elections & Politics
Some lawmakers eye ban on gender-affirming medical care
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TRANSGENDER HEALTH: Some Michigan lawmakers would like the state to follow Ohio in restricting gender-affirming medical care. Among them are legislators from Clare, Oxford, Allen, Brighton and Niles. The ACLU calls such a proposal cynical and political and argues that it would interfere with the right of individuals and families to make their own medical decisions. By Sophia Ceru. FOR LANSING CITY PULSE, CLARE, DETROIT, FOWLERVILLE, STURGIS, THREE RIVERS, HILLSDALE AND ALL POINTS.