This Week's File

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March 28, 2008—Week 10

To: CNS Editors

From: Eric Freedman & Sheila Schimpf

LEAGUE FOR HUMAN SERVICES AHEAD: Your correspondents will interview officials of the Michigan League for Human Services on Monday, March 31. Likely topics include trends in public assistance, Medicaid and food assistance in the state, unemployment and job creation and the role of local social services organizations in filling the gaps created by the state's budget woes.

HERE’S YOUR FILE:

SUECROOKS: A Clinton County legislator is leading the charge to give local officials the right to sue convicted public officials to recoup misspent public funds. The proposal comes in the wake of felony charges against Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick. Among the co-sponsors are legislators from Grand Ledge, Rochester Hills, Canton and Clinton Township. By Rob Dale. FOR LANSING, MICHIGAN CITIZEN, OAKLAND, MACOMB, ROYAL OAK, ROMEO & ALL POINTS.

MOTORLESSTRAVEL: A number of organizations, including the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy and the Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance and MDOT, are working with the Michigan Department of Transportation and local officials to promote non-motorized transportation options. Grand Rapids, for example, is exploring a "mode shift" to break the one-person, one-car travel model, and some advocates are pushing for a "complete streets" program that would require ensuring space for cyclists and pedestrians whenever a street is renovated. Tart Trails in Traverse City is expanding. By Matt Flint. FOR GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS & ALL POINTS.

HEALTHREPORT: Controversy swirls around a federal report about health risks to millions of people living around the Great Lakes, including 11 “areas of concern” in Michigan. Part of that controversy is scientific because the report doesn’t claim a cause-and-effect relationship between those environmental risks and public health. Another part of that controversy is political, focused on why the government delayed release of the study. Most of the affected areas are near the Clinton, Kalamazoo, Manistique and Rouge rivers; White, Muskegon and Deer lakes; Saginaw River and Bay; and River Raisin. We also hear from U.S. Reps. Dingell and Stupak. By Andrew McGlashen. FOR STURGIS, THREE RIVERS, MONROE, SPORTSMEN, OAKLAND, GREENVILLE, HOLLAND, MARQUETTE, MACOMB, ROMEO, LUDINGTON, UP NORTH, GLADWIN, CLARE, LAPEER & ALL POINTS.

            w/HEALTHREPORTINFOBOX: List of 11 “areas of concern” in Michigan.

NURSEROADBLOCK:  After a two-year wait, Tera Neirath was ecstatic when Oakland Community College’s nursing program finally accepted her. Like many other nursing programs across the state, including that at Lansing Community College, demand for seats far outweighs those available. The problem is exacerbating the state’s shortage of nurses. The LCC program turns away more qualified applicants than it accepts. The Department of Community Health and Michigan Nurses Association blame the situation on too few nursing school faculty and two few clinical placement opportunities. By Brooke Meier. FOR OAKLAND, MICHIGAN CITIZEN, LANSING, ROYAL OAK & ALL POINTS.

LIFESPAN: An obesity epidemic among Michigan’s children suggests that for the first time in a century, American children may have shorter lifespans than their parents, experts warn. We talk to health officials from the state and from Wayne and Oakland counties about the threat and the urgent need to take action. By Tim Wardle. FOR OAKLAND, ROYAL OAK, MICHIGAN CITIZEN & ALL POINTS.

UNCLAIMEDVETS:  Legislators from Montcalm and Ottawa counties want to make it easier for funeral homes to turn over the unclaimed ashes of military veterans for burial in federal cemeteries. The funeral directors association says the measure would be a start in resolving the industry’s problem of unclaimed ashes. Greenville and Lansing funeral directors talk about the situation, as does the American Legion. By Brooke Meier. FOR GREENVILLE, HOLLAND, LANSING, MICHIGAN CITIZEN & ALL POINTS.

FIGHTINGOBESITY: Health experts say that Michigan’s expanding waistlines aren’t simply the fault of individuals. Instead,  they argue that there’s community responsibility to create environments that encourage healthier lifestyles. Innovative programs launched by health departments in Ingham, Marquette and Washtenaw counties are starting to make a difference, thanks in part to state funding. By Whitney Lloyd. FOR LANSING, MARQUETTE, OAKLAND, MICHIGAN CITIZEN & ALL POINTS.

ONLINEPHARMACIES: Ordering prescription drugs can be only a few mouse clicks away, even if you’re not examined by a doctor. That’s because of less-than-scrupulous Internet pharmacies that skirt the law and operate largely outside the power of state regulatory agencies, the Department of Community Health says. There are also concerns that the ease of obtaining drugs from online pharmacies poses a threat to children, an expert says. By Clay Taylor. FOR GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS & ALL POINTS.

PHYSICIANS: More than 6,000 Michigan physicians, including a 65-year-old pulmonary specialist from Kalamazoo, will hang up their stethoscopes and retire in the next 10 years, with especially heavy losses of primary care, family care and internal medicine specialists. Meanwhile, the need for medical services will grow with the aging of baby boomers. The Michigan State Medical Society, Michigan Osteopathic Association and Department of Community Health blame two major factors: the aging of medical professionals and the state’s economy. We also hear from Wayne State University med school officials. By Diane Ivey. FOR STURGIS, THREE RIVERS, SOUTH BEND, MICHIGAN CITIZEN, OAKLAND, MACOMB, ROYAL OAK, ROMEO & ALL POINTS.

ENVIROFARMING:  Five Oceana County farms have been cited for their environmental stewardship efforts. They’re among more than 500 farms that already meet the requirements of the Michigan Agricultural Environmental Assurance Program. A Hart fruit farmer tells what the program means to his operation. Another 6,000 across the state are going through the verification process. By Matt Flint. FOR LUDINGTON & ALL POINTS.

PERFORMANCEDRUGS: Barry Bonds indicted, Marion Jones stripped of her Olympic medals and other frequent headlines about athletes caught using steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs. But high school coaches in Michigan, including those in Traverse City and Cadillac, say they don’t see a problem affecting their teen athletes. It remains a topic of concern to federal and state agencies. For news and sports desks. By Harry Gillen. FOR CADILLAC, TRAVERSE CITY & ALL POINTS.

MYSTERIES: Real-life mysteries come in many forms – some violent like those Frederick Stonehouse tells, and others subtle like those told by Tom Springer. Both Michigan writers have turned their attention to dramas large and small. Stonehouse, of Marquette chronicles crimes such as the state’s lynching legacy in Mason, Menominee, Grayling, Corunna and Cheboygan, and stories about the Purple Gang that terrorized Detroit during Prohibition. Springer, of St. Joseph County, explores the quiet mysteries of southern Michigan's rivers, woods and fields. For news and feature desks. By Eric Freedman. FOR THREE RIVERS, STURGIS, SOUTH BEND, MARQUETTE, LANSING, PETOSKEY, TRAVERSE CITY, GRAYLING & ALL POINTS.

CNS

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