A new Medicare program offers some beneficiaries GLP-1 drugs at just $50 a month for weight loss, but the program is temporary, and eligibility rules could shut out many patients.
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
As health care costs rise, could Michigan offer its own insurance?
Senate Democrats once again are floating a plan to replace the federal health insurance exchange with one run by Michigan, a first step toward the state offering its own ‘basic health plan.’
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Michigan’s drug fight relies on harm reduction. RFK Jr. says it doesn’t work
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., stopped in southeast Michigan Wednesday to announce a multimillion-dollar effort that shifts gears in the nation’s drug fight — away from harm reduction, while leaning in to spirituality and faith
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Do Michigan parents have a right to see everything in kids’ medical records?
In Michigan, parents may face limited access to certain medical records, such as substance abuse treatment, as their children get older. State Rep. Joe Aragona, R-Clinton Township, would change that.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Michigan Blue Cross to limit mental health benefit. Will thousands lose care?
Beginning March 1, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan will no longer pay for counseling services provided in a private office by limited license providers.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Michigan Medicaid rolls drop 5%, prompting fears of surge in uninsured
Michigan’s Medicaid numbers dwindled after the state reviewed everyone’s eligibility after the pandemic. That began in 2023. It’s unclear why those numbers continue to fall.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Michiganders soon to face stricter Medicaid rules. What to know
The ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ of 2025 will mean most working-age, able-bodied Michiganders will have to prove they are working or somehow engaged in the community next year. Details are now becoming clearer.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Michigan center for adults with disabilities to reopen after dispute
Clients of the Bergmann Center, a Charlevoix day program for dozens of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, lost services last month amid a battle over funds.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Michigan drug deaths drop; $154M more in opioid-fighting funds on way
After years of steep increases, drug deaths in Michigan are declining again — this time to the lowest number in more than a decade. At the same time, Michigan will receive another $154 million in opioid settlement dollars to fund the drug fight.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
Michigan’s aging fast, but many seniors unaware of services, poll finds
A new poll finds that 2-in-5 older Michiganders don’t know about the programs and services available to them. Despite that, older residents rate the state ‘good’ to ‘excellent’ as a place to age.