Updates About Press Releases

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel recently announced a federal lawsuit against insurer Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (BCBSM). The suit accuses BCBSM of violating antitrust laws in order to monopolize as Michigan’s largest health insurance carrier.

According to Nessel, BCBSM controls 65% of the Michigan health insurance market and 79% of the Preferred Provider Organization market. Nessel argued that Blue Cross’s dominance was caused by anti-competitive agreements that restricted competition and allowed the insurer to drive provider reimbursement rates down, forcing some providers to cut services, close facilities, or leave Michigan. She also claimed that the practices used by BCBSM has resulted in millions of consumers paying inflated prices for their health insurance and medical coverage.

The lawsuit will be filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. Nessel will leave office in January, meaning her yet-to-be-elected successor, Democrat Eli Savit or Republican Doug Lloyd, will choose to either continue or drop the lawsuit.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) announced that they will be hosting the Medicaid Health Plan Common Formulary over Zoom on Tuesday, Oct. 27, from 9:30 a.m. to noon. The purpose of the meeting will be to discuss the list of prescription drugs covered under Michigan Medicaid health plans.

During the meeting, the public community partners, and other interested parties will have an opportunity to provide comments on the prescription drug list. The common formulary was created in 2016 to streamline prescription drug coverage policies and ensure consistent coverage across contracted Medicaid health plans.

To view the full press release and how to RSVP for the Zoom call, click here.

This year’s state Christmas tree has been selected! The Michigan Department of Technology, Management, and Budget (DTMB) announced that the winner is a 60-foot spruce tree from Iron Mountain in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, donated by Larry Riccio and his family.

The tree will be harvested on November 5th and arrive in downtown Lansing on November 7th. Once placed in front of the Capitol, local Boy Scout troops will continue their tradition of untying the tree. The City of Lansing’s forestry team will then prepare the tree for the decorations and lights developed by the Lansing Board of Water and Light and the Michigan Capitol Commission.

After the preparations are made, the tree lighting ceremony will take place at the 42nd annual Silver Bells in the City ceremony on November 20th, where the thousands of decorative lights will be switched on at approximately 7:30 PM.