Michigan News

DETROIT (AP) — A hospital system in southeastern Michigan is looking for up to 5,000 volunteers for a COVID-19 vaccine study. Henry Ford Health System is working with the National Institutes of Health and Moderna Inc., which want 30,000 people in the U.S. Volunteers won’t know if they’re getting the real shot or a dummy version. After two doses, scientists will closely track which group experiences more infections as they go about their daily routines. People who want to volunteer or learn more about the vaccine trial can visit www.henryford.com/ModernaVaccine.  

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan State University football team has suspended workouts and its players will quarantine for 14 days after a second staff member and a player tested positive for the coronavirus. Meanwhile, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has extended a ban on family visitors at nursing homes and congregate care sites through Aug. 31. There's an exception for people who want to see someone in serious or critical condition or in hospice care. Facilities must make "best efforts" to help residents communicate with people by phone or electronic devices.

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan State University says it will take a residence hall out of regular service and use it for students who test positive for the coronavirus. Students who signed up to live on campus can move to Akers Hall or return home for a certain period if they become infected. The dorm can hold roughly 500 people. Housing spokeswoman Kat Cooper says the Akers strategy could create a housing shortage, although it’s not seen as likely at this time. MSU students, staff and visitors are required to wear masks on campus. The fall term starts Sept. 2.

THREE OAKS, Mich. (AP) — A man who robbed a small town bank in southwestern Michigan and tried to rob another has been sentenced to 18 years in federal prison. David Floyd’s sentence last week was enhanced by his previous criminal record. Floyd has ties to Michigan City, Indiana. He admitted to robbing $11,300 from the former New Buffalo Savings Bank in Three Oaks, and attempting to rob the G.W. Jones Exchange Bank in Edwardsburg. Floyd’s attorney says he had a BB gun and “never intended to harm anyone.” She says he had a drug problem.   

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Dozens of people broke a sweat on the lawn of the Michigan Capitol. It was a workout intended to highlight the plight of gyms that have been closed for months under Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s coronavirus orders. Alyssa Tushman, vice chair of the Michigan Fitness Club Association, says gyms are “desperately in need of help.” Whitmer ordered gyms closed, along with casinos and theaters, in an effort to slow down the rate of coronavirus infection. Gyms in the northern Michigan were allowed to reopen on June 10.

The president-elect of the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan says residents have to wear a mask inside businesses and police can step in to enforce it.

DETROIT (AP) — The Michigan Supreme Court says local governments can't keep surplus cash from the sale of tax-foreclosed properties. It's a sweeping decision that could lead to waves of payments to former owners. State law allowed county treasurers to keep money left over after overdue taxes finally are paid from a property sale. The Supreme Court said the practice is illegal under the Michigan Constitution. The case centered on two sales in Oakland County. In one deal, a man owed $6,000 in back taxes, but the county also kept a $76,000 surplus from the land sale. 

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has tweaked her order to wear masks in public, clarifying that it's not required while voting and telling businesses they can't assume people who enter without a face covering are covered by exceptions. The changes made Friday come a week after she updated the mask rule to add a $500 fine and require businesses to refuse entry to those without a mask. Businesses can't assume maskless customers are exempt but can accept their "verbal representation" that they are.

Today the Michigan HIgh School Athletic Assn. announced it is planning for the high school sports season to go on as scheduled.

(You can read the release below.) 

Michigan High School Athletic Association member schools will begin the 2020-21 school year playing Fall sports as traditionally scheduled, but with contingency concepts for potential interruptions due to the spread of COVID-19.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan liquor regulators want an East Lansing bar to answer questions about a coronavirus outbreak that infected at least 180 people and was a factor in Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's decision to halt indoor service at establishments that chiefly sell alcohol. A hearing scheduled for next week could result in a license suspension or revocation for Harper's Restaurant and Brewpub, which currently is closed. But the purpose primarily is fact-finding.

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SAUGATUCK, Mich. (AP) — The man who painted a mural of an American Indian at a school gym in 1975 says he’s willing to cover it up if the western Michigan district drops the nickname. The superintendent and school board president in Saugatuck say it’s time to reexamine the Indians nickname. The 800-student district discussed the issue Monday during a school board meeting held by video conference. John Fox, a member of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi, painted the mural decades ago. He says he'd paint a new logo at no charge. The board didn’t take a vote Monday, although many public speakers were in favor of dropping the nickname.

The University of Michigan says fewer fans, if any, will attend games at "The Big House" if the Wolverines play college football games this year.

The state will hire a firm to study the possibility of changing some freeways in Michigan to toll roads.

Beginning today Michigan residents must wear a face covering both inside stores and in crowded outdoor areas.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is toughening a requirement to wear masks during the coronavirus pandemic, mandating that businesses open to the public deny service or entry to customers who refuse to wear one. The governor on Friday also expanded where people must have a face covering beyond indoor public spaces. Starting immediately, they have to wear one outdoors if they cannot consistently keep 6 feet from non-household members, and while using public transportation, a taxi or a ride-sharing vehicle. Violators will be subject to a misdemeanor fine.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — All health workers in Michigan will be required to receive "implicit bias" training under a directive issued by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who says the mandate is intended to address the coronavirus pandemic's disproportionate impact on people of color. The order requires the state licensing department to write rules requiring the training as part of the licensing and registration of health professionals.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan’s new coronavirus infections topped 600 Wednesday, the highest daily number since late May. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has warned that restrictions are possible if cases heat up. Whitmer plans to speak to reporters Thursday. The state reported 610 new cases and 10 additional deaths. It had 607 new cases on May 29 and 659 back on May 20. Since March, the state has reported more than 67,000 confirmed cases and 6,015 COVID-19 deaths. Tens of thousands of people have recovered.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Organizers say they will begin collecting voter signatures within days for a veto-proof measure that would repeal a law that has given Gov. Gretchen Whitmer broad emergency powers during the pandemic. The ballot committee Unlock Michigan announced its plan after the state elections board approved a summary of the petition Monday. It would rescind a 1945 law that the Democratic governor has cited to close businesses, limit gathering sizes and restrict other activities to curb the coronavirus.

LAGRANGE TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Hundreds of people spent Independence Day in swimsuits but no masks at a lake in southwestern Michigan. The turnout disappointed authorities who warn that the coronavirus remains a threat. The party occurred Saturday at Diamond Lake, near Cassopolis in Cass County. The sheriff’s office said it couldn’t stop the gathering, although officers were at the lake to ticket people for certain offenses. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s office said it was “incredibly disappointing” to see so many people ignoring safe distance guidelines.

GULL LAKE, Mich. (AP) — Police say a man was fatally struck by a boat while swimming in a western Michigan lake over the weekend. The man was hit Sunday afternoon on Gull Lake near Kalamazoo. The Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office says the man was brought to shore for lifesaving measures but was pronounced dead from his injuries at the scene. That incident followed a 17-year-old from Inkster drowning Saturday at a privately operated lake in southeastern Michigan. The Monroe County Sheriff's Office said divers found boy's body about 30 feet from the shore of Milan Beach.

LANSING, Mich (AP) — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is closing indoor seating in bars in parts of the state, including a city with a bar that has been linked to a rising number of infections. Whitmer on Wednesday also signed a bill allowing bars and restaurants to sell cocktails-to-go in an effort to help those businesses. Bars won’t have to close down completely, according to an new executive order. And the Upper Peninsula and much of northern Michigan are not subject to the order due to low numbers of reported COVID-19 virus cases. All bars may still keep open their outdoor patios.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan’s governor has unveiled her plans to return students to the classroom this fall for the first time since schools were closed in March in favor of remote learning to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer told reporters Tuesday that the Safe Start plan requires districts to make safety plans in preparation for the upcoming school year and includes $256 million from the state to support those efforts. The plan lays out requirements and makes recommendations for districts to follow. Different stages are tied to Whitmer’s six-phase regional approach to economically reopening the state.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Orders have been issued by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services that allow for expanded visitations at nursing and other residential facilities. Visits to the facilities have been restricted to slow the spread of COVID-19. The two orders signed Tuesday by MDHHS Director Robert Gordon allow exceptions to the restrictions as long as the facilities meet specific safety requirements, such as requiring masks during visits.