May 1st, 20200
LANSING - Today, at a press conference with members from health care industry, business, and labor, Governor Whitmer signed Executive Order 2020-70 as part of her "MI Safe Start" plan. The executive order will allow the May 7 resumption of some types of work that present a very low risk of infection, including construction,...
April 30th, 20201LANSING — On Thursday, after the Republican-controlled Michigan legislature all but declared victory in their battle to reopen the economy and effectively end Governor Whitmer’s emergency powers, Whitmer took swift and decisive action by signing four new executive orders to continue fighting COVID-19 and the save lives of...
April 30th, 20200LANSING — State officials are urging Michiganders to be look for help if they’re struggling to pay their utility bills by reaching out to their energy providers and seeking financial assistance if they’ve lost a job or their income has dropped amid the coronavirus pandemic.
State leaders encourage anyone facing financial...
April 29th, 20200LANSING — While the U.S. Department of Justice seeks probes into the constitutionality of lock-down orders in various states, including Michigan, Lansing announced on Wednesday a Michigan Court of Claims ruling that sided with Governor Whitmer, holding that the current “Stay Home, Stay Safe” executive order did not infringe upon...
April 29th, 20200
LANSING — On Wednesday, Governor Whitmer announced a series of initiatives to help Michigan workers and their families during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, including the "Futures for Frontliners” program to provide a tuition-free pathway to college or a technical certificate to essential workers who don’t have a...
April 27th, 20200LANSING — On Monday, Governor Whitmer signaled her broad and long-term plan for the gradual reopening of the state’s economy. Strict isolation and shutdown measures have thus far proven markedly successful, as hospitals and county health department report plateauing numbers of COVID-19 related cases in Michigan.
Whitmer was...
April 23rd, 20200LANSING - The Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA) has released tallies for benefits given out to unemployed workers in Michigan as a consequence of the COVID-19 outbreak in the state. The UIA said it has provided an estimated 820,000 unemployed Michigan workers $1.37 billion in benefits, an unprecedented number. The agency...
April 21st, 20200LANSING — As part of efforts to continue expanding COVID-19 testing and contact tracing of potentially exposed Michiganders, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) again expanded its testing criteria to include all essential workers still reporting to work in person, whether they have symptoms or not, and...
April 21st, 20202DEARBORN — Governor Whitmer announced on Monday further expansion of state-wide testing sites and capabilities. Part of this expansion is a partnership between the state and CVS Health, which will provide rapid, drive-through COVID-19 testing in Dearborn.
According to Whitmer's office, testing will be conducted in the parking lot...
April 19th, 20201LANSING — After Wednesday's "Operation Gridlock" protests made national news, Lansing's Mayor Andy Schor is promising tough measures on any future protest that fail to correctly observe CDC social distancing guideline and openly violate Governor Whitemer's "Stay Home, Stay Safe" order.
The protesters gathered Wednesday afternoon...
April 14th, 20200LANSING — The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) has announced it is expanding testing criteria for Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) to include individuals with mild symptoms, and has published a COVID-19 test site finder at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus to help Michiganders locate a testing site near...
April 13th, 20200DEARBORN - The Arab American News spoke to Dr. Joneigh Khaldun on Monday morning about the state of COVID-19 in Michigan. Khaldun is the chief medical executive and chief deputy director for health for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS).
Many in the state may now be familiar with Khaldun, who joins Governor...
April 10th, 20200LANSING - The Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS) announced that the state has received agreements from nearly all of the state’s health insurance companies to waive cost-sharing, including copays, deductibles, and coinsurance for coronavirus (COVID-19) testing and treatments. The Whitmer Administration and...
April 9th, 20200DETROIT - When Dr. Mahmoud Al-Hadidi, a physician specializing in pulmonary intensive care, noticed there was a drastic need for medical supplies and food for frontline healthcare workers in southeast Michigan fighting the terrible COVID-19 disease, he rose to the challenge.
Hadidi, who practices medicine at a prominent hospital in...
April 9th, 20200LANSING — Michigan has become the first state in the country to gain federal approval for a program that will provide nutritious food to children who were affected by school closings due to COVID-19. The Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer Program (P-EBT) provides temporary funding to address emergency food needs and avert financial...
April 9th, 20200LANSING — After signing the latest order extending the previous “stay home” order till the end of April, Governor Whitmer went live to speak on what this new development means for Michiganders. She joined Michigan’s chief medical executive, Dr. Janeigh Khaldoun, to emphasize that staying home and following distancing guidelines...
April 7th, 20200LANSING — Michiganders who lose a job, resulting in a loss of their healthcare coverage or a change in income, may have low or no-cost healthcare options available through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace, Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Consumers in these situations are not required to wait for...
April 6th, 20200DEARBORN – Under Governor Whitmer’s “Stay Home, Stay Safe” executive order, residents are reminded that they are prohibited from being able to gather with those who do not live in their household, to reduce the potential spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.
The governor’s executive order states, with some narrow...
April 6th, 20200NOVI — Michigan has selected the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi as the site of a second alternate care facility to expand medical capacity during the state’s response to COVID-19. This decision comes days after Governor Whitmer announced the state’s first alternate care facility at the TCF Center in Detroit.
After...
April 6th, 20200LANSING - On Monday, Governor Whitmer warned of shortage in major hospitals in Michigan amid a week of increasing COVID-19 cases in the state and said the state is now looking to expand the “stay home” order past its April end-date.
Speaking from her capital office on Monday, April 6, Whitmer said the state was running...
April 3rd, 20200DEARBORN — A strange yet familiar scene plays out at grocery stores in Dearborn on most days, one that has been commonplace since the outbreak of COVID-19 in the state reached a critical level.
Customers stand in line outside the double door, waiting for an employee in a face mask and gloves to let them in one at a time. At...
April 2nd, 20200LANSING — Today Governor Whitmer signed Executive Order 2020-35, which orders all K-12 school buildings to close for the remainder of the school year — unless restrictions are lifted — and ensures continuing of learning by setting guidelines for remote learning. District facilities may be used by public school employees and...
April 1st, 20200LANSING - On Wednesday, Governor Whitmer signed Executive Order 2020-33, which recognizes the expanded scope of economic, educational, and civic dislocation caused by the COVID-19, and equips the administration to address fully the devastation caused by virus. The order also formally declares a state of disaster.
“Since Michigan...
March 31st, 20200DEARBORN — State Rep. Isaac Robinson (D-Detroit) passed away from a suspected coronavirus infection on Sunday morning at a Detroit hospital. Robinson was beloved and respected by many in the Arab American community in Metro Detroit.
Friends and colleagues called Robinson an advocate ally of working class residents of the Fourth...
March 30th, 20200LANSING — Michigan has increased its unemployment benefits for all unemployed workers by a set amount of $600 a week for up to four months. The change applies to workers already in the unemployment systems and eligible employees about to apply for benefits. Governor Whitmer announced the new programs for workers on Monday, after...
March 28th, 20200
LANSING - President Trump has approved Governor Whitmer’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration in Michigan. The declaration means that Michigan is now eligible for participation in the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) programming to provide relief for Michiganders impacted by the COVID-19 virus and measures to slow...
March 28th, 20201LANSING – Governor Whitmer has signed Executive Order 2020-26 which pushes all April 2020 state and city income tax filing deadlines in Michigan to July, as a part of continued efforts to help Michiganders during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Effective immediately, state of Michigan and city of Detroit income tax returns and payments due...
March 28th, 20201LANSING - Due to an overwhelming increase in claims, resulting in heavy website and telephone traffic during the COVID-19 outbreak, the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA) has developed a schedule for workers to file for benefits based on the first letter of their last name. The agency says this new schedule will improve...
