There is no hope for you if you have experienced your typical attempted beheading on the streets of Jolly 'Ol.  You will die, but it will be free:

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/jun/08/more-than-1300-deaths-a-month-in-england-due-to-long-ae-waits-figures-suggest

More than 1,300 deaths a month in England due to long A&E waits, figures suggest
Senior medical staff call for solutions to tackle root causes of excess deaths amid tenfold increase in a decade
By Andrew Gregory Health editor - June 8, 2026

More than 1,300 patients a month in England are dying needlessly due to long A&E waits, a tenfold rise in a decade, figures suggest.

There were more than 300 deaths linked to long waits every week in 2025, up from 30 a week in 2015, according to analysis by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine.

The RCEM’s president, Dr Ian Higginson, said he wondered how many more deaths it would take before there was a meaningful plan to tackle the crisis.

“We have to ask why this awful problem isn’t the subject of relentless focus and political conversation. The number of deaths linked to long stays in our emergency departments explicitly show the system is failing the patients it is meant to be caring for,” he said.

For its excess death estimates, the RCEM used a study of more than 5 million NHS patients published in the Emergency Medicine Journal in 2021. This found there was one excess death for every 72 patients who spent eight to 12 hours in A&E before being found a bed. The risk of death started to increase after five hours and got worse with longer waiting times.

Using this method, the RCEM estimated there were 15,860 excess deaths in 2025 related to long waits. The figure was down slightly on 2024 (16,644) but up nearly tenfold on 2015 (1,657).

Higginson said: “As an emergency doctor, it’s heartbreaking that patients arrive to our emergency departments in their time of need, and we can’t do our jobs properly because we are full. To make things worse we are being asked to focus on the least sick patients to try and marginally improve headline statistics, rather than on those who need our services the most.

“It’s frustrating that we continue to see a lack of solutions designed to tackle the root causes of the problem. Instead, we are fobbed off with recycled ideas that haven’t ever worked, performance data that doesn’t reflect reality, and a focus on perceived ‘quick fixes’.”

He added: “Whilst we welcome the government’s stated commitment to eliminate corridor care, until we prioritise patients who experience long waits for admission, we will not get to the bottom of the whole issue.”

In the meantime, Higginson said, A&Es in England would remain in constant distress and patients would continue to die unnecessarily.

Prof Nicola Ranger, the general secretary and chief executive of the Royal College of Nursing, said the death toll was a catastrophe that had gone unchecked in hospitals for far too long.

“To bring this to an end, we need system-wide, long-term, sustainable solutions. This must include urgent investment in hospital beds and the nursing workforce, while also improving access to primary care, investing in community nursing and unlocking capacity in social care,” she said.

Every day without action was a failure that had “devastating consequences” for patients, she added.

Dr Vicky Price, the president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said the deaths were a source of “national shame” and the problem of overcrowding in A&Es was getting worse.

The Department of Health and Social Care said it was unacceptable for patients to face long waits for emergency care, and its thoughts were with those who had lost loved ones.

A spokesperson added: “While A&E waiting times are at their lowest level in half a decade, we know there is more to do. That is why we are investing over £215m in 40 new and expanded same-day emergency care and urgent treatment centres across England to reduce pressure on A&E.”

They said the government was also deploying specialist teams to NHS trusts with the worst levels of corridor care in an effort to eradicate it.

Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases:

If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.

Phases 2 and 3, covered right here in committee.

Wednesday, June 10, 2026      2:00 p.m.

AGENDA

SB 724
Sen. Geiss
Food: milk; human breast milk banks, companies, and cooperatives; regulate.

SB 725
Sen. Geiss
Human services: medical services; medical assistance coverage for donor human milk; require under certain conditions.

SB 726
Sen. Geiss
Criminal procedure: sentencing guidelines; sentencing guidelines for crimes involving the provision of adulterated or raw human milk for human consumption; provide for.

And any other business properly before the committee.

Wednesday, June 10, 2026      12:00 PM

AGENDA

HB 5814 (Rep. Maddock)
Human services: medical services; retroactive coverage for medical assistance under the medical assistance program; modify.

HB 5993 (Rep. Harris)
Insurance: other; credit card processing fees; allow insurance producers to collect.

HB 5994 (Rep. Snyder)
Insurance: other; processing fees; allow premium finance companies to collect.

OR ANY BUSINESS PROPERLY BEFORE THIS COMMITTEE

Now-resigned CEO Lockwood-Taylor features prominently.

https://www.woodtv.com/news/grand-rapids/perrigo-ceo-out-over-personal-conduct-allegations/

Perrigo CEO out over ‘personal conduct’ allegations

Katherine Connolly    |    Jun 8, 2026

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The CEO of Perrigo resigned Monday in a surprise move the Grand Rapids-headquartered healthcare company attributed to “personal conduct” issues.

Patrick Lockwood-Taylor resigned as president and CEO of the health and wellness company effective immediately Monday following allegations of misconduct, according to a release. The conduct was not directly related to Perrigo’s business, operations or financial reporting, the company said.

“This resignation follows a determination by the Board of Directors that certain personal conduct by Mr. Lockwood-Taylor was not consistent with the Company’s Code of Conduct and core values,” Perrigo said in a statement.

The company announced that Albert A. Manzone, who has served on the board since 2022, was appointed to fill the position while the board searches for a permanent replacement.

“Perrigo’s core values are foundational to how we operate, and the Board expects all colleagues — especially our senior leaders — to uphold those standards at all times,” Chair of Perrigo’s Board of Directors Orlando Ashford said in a statement. “The Board acted decisively and has full confidence in Albert, who brings more than 30 years of global leadership experience and a proven track record of transforming businesses at inflection points and creating value as well as deep knowledge of our business, people, and self-care platform.”

Lockwood-Taylor, the former president of international healthcare company Bayer’s U.S. arm, joined Perrigo as CEO in June 2023. According to Crain’s Grand Rapids Business, he signed a three-year contract extension in February 2025 that guaranteed him nearly $3 million per year in pay and a move to the company’s New Jersey offices.

https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5915249-medical-education-nutrition-requirements/

Medical school organizations sign on to RFK Jr.’s nutrition requirements
By Joseph Choi - June 8, 2026

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced Monday that numerous medical school accrediting organizations and assessors have agreed to increase nutrition requirements for U.S. medical education.

HHS said in a release that eight medical school organizations had agreed to “increase nutrition requirements at every level of U.S. medical education, competency-evaluation, training, and residency.”

The release did not specify what these increased requirements will be. Earlier this year, the Trump administration announced partnerships with dozens of medical schools that would incorporate 40 hours of nutrition education before graduation.

The medical school groups who signed on to participate include:

• The National Board of Medical Examiners
• The National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners
• The Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education
• The Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME)
• The Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation
• The American Board of Medical Specialties
• The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education
• The The American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine

The LCME’s participation in HHS’s nutrition push signals a major endorsement by the medical establishment, being the leading accrediting authority in the U.S. for M.D. programs.

As part of the announcement on Monday, HHS shared that 19 more schools had joined this pledge including the University of Massachusetts, University of Maryland, St. Louis University School of Medicine, Hofstra University and Texas A&M University.

“Poor diets are the primary driver of America’s chronic disease epidemic, and today’s announcement reflects the shifting landscape toward placing nutrition and prevention at the core of patient health,” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a statement. “Still, more work remains, and I look forward to seeing nutrition play an increased role as the latest science, data, and best practices develop.”

https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs/inside-mdhhs/newsroom/2026/06/08/eat-safe

https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs/safety-injury-prev/environmental-health/topics/eatsafefish/find-your-area

Michigan releases 2026 Eat Safe Fish Guides about local fish consumption
June 08, 2026

LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) has released the 2026 Eat Safe Fish Guides to help Michigan residents choose fish that are best for them and their families to eat.

The Eat Safe Fish Guides provide consumption guidelines for eating locally caught fish. Guidelines are based on levels of chemicals found in the portions of fish people eat, typically the filets. Test results from the MDHHS Bureau of Laboratories are used to determine what can be safe for people to eat over the long term.

“There are many health benefits to eating fish and the Eat Safe Fish Guides provide consumption recommendations based on the levels of certain chemicals found in fish in waterbodies across the state,” said Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical executive. “Michigan families can use these guidelines to help make healthy choices about the fish they eat.”

In total, the guides provide consumption guidelines for 696 Michigan waterbodies. This year, there were 59 guidelines that were relaxed and 65 that became more protective than previous years.

MDHHS Eat Safe Fish Guides are not laws or regulations. They provide free guidance to help people choose fish that are safe to eat and less likely to affect their health due to harmful chemicals. The Eat Safe Fish Guides use lab test results to provide specific fish and waterbody consumption guidelines in an easy-to-use format. The guidelines are set to be protective of all individuals, including children, pregnant or breastfeeding women and people with health issues including cancer and diabetes.

MDHHS also produces the Buy Safe Fish Guide to help residents choose seafood lower in mercury from local grocery stores, fish markets and restaurants. The Eat Safe Fish Guides and Buy Safe Fish Guide are available at Michigan.gov/EatSafeFish.

For more information on how to buy, eat or prepare safe fish, or to get the 2026 Eat Safe Fish Guide for your region, visit Michigan.gov/EatSafeFish and select Find Your Area or call the MDHHS Environmental Health Bureau at 800-648-6942.

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-secures-resolution-cleveland-clinic-end-pediatric-gender-affirming-care

Justice Department Secures Resolution with Cleveland Clinic to End Pediatric “Gender-Affirming Care”
For Immediate Release - Friday, June 5, 2026
DoJ Office of Public Affairs

Cleveland Clinic Foundation follows Texas Children’s Hospital in reaching agreement with the Department of Justice to provide detransition care and not perform sex-rejecting procedures on minors

Today, the Department of Justice announced another resolution arising from its ongoing national investigation into violations of federal law in connection with sex-rejecting procedures on minors (often euphemistically referred to as “gender-affirming care”). The Cleveland Clinic Foundation (“Cleveland Clinic”) has entered into agreements with the Department and the Ohio Attorney General that include a decades-long commitment to not perform or offer sex-rejecting procedures—which includes the administration of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones—for minors. Cleveland Clinic has also agreed to pay a monetary penalty and, in a landmark commitment, dedicate additional millions to help provide essential medical care for individuals living with the harmful consequences of such misguided medical interventions performed on them as children and adolescents (i.e., “detransitioners”).

“The Department of Justice is steadfastly committed to protecting America’s children,” said Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward. “Just as the resolution with Texas Children’s, today’s resolution with Cleveland Clinic furthers that commitment and puts these providers on notice that this Department will vigorously enforce federal law where children are put at risk.”

According to the terms of the agreements, which the Department reached in coordination with Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, Cleveland Clinic—a partner in other Administration priority initiatives—will pay $308,000 to resolve allegations regarding false billings submitted to public and private payors to secure insurance coverage for sex-rejecting procedures on minors. As part of the resolution, Cleveland Clinic has committed $2 million to provide restorative care for detransitioners—the very victims of these predatory and dangerous practices—regardless of their insured status or ability to pay.

The agreements come less than a month after the Justice Department announced its resolution with Texas Children’s Hospital (“Texas Children’s”), which the Department secured through a partnership with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. As previously announced, Texas Children’s agreed to pay a $10,000,000 penalty, and, much like Cleveland Clinic’s commitment today, create the first-of-its-kind clinic dedicated to treating detransitioners. Texas Children’s also agreed to permanently cease providing any sex-rejecting procedures to minors.

These historic commitments pair the cessation of these dangerous practices masquerading as medical treatment with substantial investments in remediating the destruction they cause and restoring the health of the victims.

In working towards this settlement, the United States acknowledged that Cleveland Clinic took significant steps entitling it to credit for cooperation with the Department in its investigation. At all times during the investigation, Cleveland Clinic remained cooperative, proactive, and solution-driven, as highlighted by its multi-million dollar commitment to providing care to the victims who most need it.

“I am grateful that institutions like Cleveland Clinic and Texas Children’s have decided to be part of the solution, not part of the problem,” said Brett Shumate, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division. “Cleveland Clinic’s commitment to providing millions of dollars towards care for detransitioners is emblematic of just that. I am grateful for this resolution with Cleveland Clinic, but our work is far from over, and our division will continue to work tirelessly to protect America’s children and hold accountable those that have preyed on vulnerable children, whether they be pharmaceutical companies or medical providers.”

These matters and the investigations into sex-rejecting procedures on minors are being led by the Justice Department’s Civil Division Enforcement and Affirmative Litigation Branch and Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section.

The claims resolved by the United States in the settlements are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability. Cleveland Clinic has denied all allegations.

https://bridgemi.com/michigan-health-watch/michigan-medicaid-rolls-drop-5-prompting-fears-of-surge-in-uninsured/

• It’s unclear why 149,000 fewer Michiganders are covered by Medicaid now than at the end of 2024, nor is it clear how many have found coverage elsewhere or are now uninsured.
• About 149,000 Michiganders have lost Medicaid coverage in a 16-month period
• No one’s sure why, but they have theories
• It’s a particular concern now, as Michigan and other states prepare to enforce federal requirements that could squeeze more people from coverage

As states prepare to tighten access around Medicaid benefits, Michigan is facing the possibility of a big rise in people without health insurance.

That includes more than 149,000 people who have already vanished from its Medicaid program in the last 16 months for reasons that elude many experts.

They do not appear to have gained coverage through employers — at least not all of them, according to the Michigan Association of Health Plans, which tracks insurance enrollment data.

Nor do those 149,000 — representing a drop of more than 5% in total enrollment — appear to have migrated en masse to the federal marketplace where consumers buy insurance directly.

It’s a particular concern now for advocates for Michigan’s low-income and disabled residents, who worry that many of those 149,000 residents are now uninsured.

“We just don’t know what is driving that loss in enrollment,” said Dominick Pallone, executive director of the insurance association.

There are several theories for the decline — from confusion about ever-changing policies to the immigration crackdown to cuts in critical staff. Some even cite a better economy.

But it comes as even more Michiganders are likely to lose coverage through Medicaid starting next year.

Michigan and other states are gearing up for new federal requirements that will force beneficiaries next year to prove they are working, looking for work, engaged in the community, going to school or in a training program.

The Trump administration is still releasing guidance on those requirements — the latest arrived this week. In Michigan, the Whitmer administration has estimated that up to 200,000 residents will lose coverage under the new requirements, including some who are eligible, but fail to submit all their necessary documentation.

“We’re looking down the end of the barrel here,” said Jeremy Lapedis, executive director of the Washtenaw Health Project, an Ann Arbor-based nonprofit that works with the Washtenaw County health department to help residents find affordable coverage.

Left without coverage, those Michiganders will seek treatment only when it’s most serious and most expensive, Lapedis said.

It’s a problem that leads to medical debt for the individual and drives up health care costs for everyone.

“Those costs (for uninsured people) have to shift somewhere — whether it’s on the hospitals or places like ours,” said Jessica Kowalski, deputy director of clinical operations at the ACCESS Community Health and Research Center, a Dearborn-based community service organization that provides medical care.

The drop in Medicaid enrollment over the past year or so — even before new federal requirements, “may be a precursor to what we’re going to see in the future, which is just a huge stress to the entire health care system,” said Jeremy Lapedis, executive director of the Washtenaw Health Project, an Ann Arbor-based nonprofit that works with the Washtenaw County health department to help residents find affordable coverage.

In fact, the numbers of Michiganders covered by Medicaid significantly dropped the latter half of last year — more so than the US in general, according to KFF, a San Francisco-based nonprofit focused on health research.

At ACCESS, staff see the change firsthand, said Kowalski.

“People are coming in and we check their insurance,” Kowalski said, “and we tell them, ‘Your insurance is inactive.’ They’re shocked. They’re like, ‘What do you mean?’”

State officials appear baffled at the loss, too.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services is “monitoring this trend closely,” department spokesperson Laina Stebbins said in an email to Bridge.

“Identifying and understanding the factors driving this decline is an important area of focus for the department,” she wrote.

Post-COVID rightsizing or a concern?

There’s an argument that Michigan’s Medicaid program — one that cost $25 billion in 2024, according to the most recent numbers — is simply being made more efficient and slicing out what critics, including President Trump, say is waste and abuse.

Whatever the cause for the declining enrollment, it means less taxpayer money being spent on Medicaid in the short-term.

Cost savings weren’t immediately available on Wednesday but likely tally tens of millions of dollars a year.

By one 2022 estimate, an additional 775,000 people getting Michigan Medicaid during the pandemic cost Michigan taxpayers $50 million a month.

“It’s always easy to take the negative side of this, but I think the good part is that we’ve been able to graduate some people off Medicaid,” state Rep. Curt VanderWall, R-Ludington, said. “They’ve actually found full-time employment … and (become) independent.”

State Rep. Phil Green, R-Watertown Township, agreed. He’s vice chair on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Medicaid and Behavioral Health.

There’s a “plethora of reasons” — good and bad — behind the disenrollments, he said.

“I think without doing … exit interviews, we’re just sort of surmising,” the reasons behind the enrollment drop, he said.

And long term, the shrinking enrollment is less stark: Enrollment last month remained slightly above enrollment just prior to the pandemic: There were about 46,000 more people in Medicaid in April then in March 2020, the month Michigan confirmed its first COVID case.

‘Churn’

Certainly, monthly enrollment in Medicaid fluctuates. It exploded, in fact, during COVID.

As the pandemic gripped the US in 2020, Michigan and other states suspended annual eligibility reviews that caused a “churn” of people in and out of Medicaid each month.

With few exceptions, federal law prevented anyone from being disenrolled from Medicaid during the pandemic. The goal was to help people remain insured during the global health scare and economic upheaval.

By June 2023, that meant that nearly 3.3 million Michiganders — nearly

1 in 3 — was covered either by traditional Medicaid, which generally covers the lowest-income or disabled residents, and Healthy Michigan, which covers those whose family income is up to 138% of the federal poverty level and are relatively healthy.

In June that year, annual reviews restarted under the direction of the Biden administration. The year-long process, known as “unwinding,” whittled Michigan’s Medicaid back to fewer than 2.7 million by the end of 2024, according to state data.

That’s when experts expected enrollment to stabilize.

But since then, enrollment has continued to tumble — to just over 2.5 million by the end of April 2026, according to state data.

“You would have expected (the decline) to level off at some point,” said Lapedis at the Washtenaw Health Project. “It hasn’t, and we don’t know why.”

Moreover, more than 175,000 Medicaid beneficiaries are now enrolled in Plan First, a Medicaid plan launched in 2023 that provides narrow coverage limited to sexual health only.

While Plan First beneficiaries would have no coverage at all otherwise, their numbers further inflates the total size of Michigan’s Medicaid enrollees, said Pallone at the insurance industry group.

Anxiety, aging and other theories

Advocates have offered several theories for the drop in Medicaid enrollment. Among them: anxiety.

The debate last year and ultimate passage of the “Big, Beautiful Bill,” made it clear that big cuts and stricter rules in Medicaid are ahead.

Confused, some Michiganders “might just not be re-enrolling or applying to begin with,” said Amber Bellazaire, a senior policy analyst for the Michigan League for Public Policy, a Lansing-based nonprofit organization that advocates for low-income Michiganders.

Additionally, a high-profile, nationwide crackdown on immigration likely forced down enrollment, too, said Jennifer Tolbert, deputy director of the Program on Medicaid and the Uninsured at KFF, a nonprofit health policy research, polling, and news organization.

Undocumented immigrants do not have access to full Medicaid benefits in Michigan; however, they may get emergency care, according to state eligibility criteria.

“That population is on edge right now for good reason,” agreed Pallone, at the insurance group. “They could be a total lawful citizen, properly enrolled in Medicaid … and worry that they’re going to get swept up in some ICE raid at (a state government) office if they go and show up to reapply.”

Another theory: Michigan is aging faster than other states. About 380 Michiganders each day turn 65, the age at which they age into Medicare.

And it may be, as VanderWall suggested, that some Michiganders have taken higher-paying jobs after the pandemic, and they’re accessing insurance now through their employers or the individual marketplace, www.healthcare.gov, Pallone said.

Still, any growth in Medicare, employer-sponsored or marketplace plans falls far short of 149,000 people, he added.

‘Slashed’

Pallone also believes short staffing at local state offices has disrupted coverage for some beneficiaries who need in-person help.

“That’s a leading theory right now,” he said.

Finally, the Trump administration last year slashed nearly all funding for navigators, the on-the-ground staff that help Americans sort through options and enroll in coverage, said Kowalski at ACCESS.

For its part, Michigan’s funding dropped from $2.8 million to $280,000, forcing ACCESS to cancel its 22 contracts with navigators throughout the state and to lay off two of its own staff, Kowalski said.

All of this leaves the question: Are the 149,000 people now without coverage?

“We’re a bit at a loss,” Pallone said.

https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/investigations/2026/06/02/agency-handling-protections-for-michigans-mental-health-patients-under-scrutiny/

https://www.house.mi.gov/Document/?DocumentId=69074&DocumentType=CommitteeMeetingMinutes

https://audgen.michigan.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/rs391012024-923483.pdf

https://www.senatormichaelwebber.com/webber-orr-testimony-fails-to-demonstrate-meaningful-change/

Agency handling protections for Michigan’s mental health patients under scrutiny
Office of Recipient Rights director testifies before lawmakers

• Nearly 30% of complaints alleging abuse, neglect, serious injury, or death, were not retrieved or acted on until 2 to 12 days after being filed. The state’s supposed to respond within 24 hours.
• More than 10% of complaints lacked a date stamp, meaning it was impossible to tell if the state’s actions were timely.

• Staff has been trained to date stamp documents when they receive them.
• The Office of Recipient Rights currently have 25 staff members and are looking to get funding to hire 2 more.
• They currently have a goal of transitioning their record-keeping to an electronic system.

If you see a health policy link to either of the other bills, please let me know so I can update the post.

Thursday, June 11, 2026      9:00 AM

AGENDA

SB 102 (Sen. Wojno)
Counties: employees and officers; request for transcript and abstract of paper or record; modify.

HB 5506 (Rep. Kuhn)
Public employees and officers: ethics; certain local officials acting as lobbyists outside of the course and scope of the official's office; prohibit.

HB 6009 (Rep. Roth)
Public employees and officers: compensation and benefits; severance pay for executive and legislative branch employees and officers; limit, and require reporting if greater than a certain amount.

OR ANY BUSINESS PROPERLY BEFORE THIS COMMITTEE