Updates About Press Releases

Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist II announced recently that he is dropping out from the Gubernatorial race where he has been campaigning for the spot as Michigan’s next Democratic Governor, alongside frontrunner and current Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson.

After bowing out of the race for Governor, Gilchrist announced that he is now seeking his party’s nomination for Secretary of State. His new opponents, Ingham County Clerk Barb Byrum and former Michigan Lottery Commissioner Suzanna Shkreli, both criticized his decision in statements made on social media. Deputy Secretary of State Aghogho Edevbie responded by exiting the race and has since endorsed Gilchrist, urging party unity while also admitting that Gilchrist’s entry shrunk his own path to victory.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) issued a statement this week in response to the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ decision to delay its recommendation on administering the hepatitis B vaccine at birth. The department stressed the importance of early protection against hepatitis B and encouraged families and health providers to continue following the immunization schedules outlined by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians. With an estimated 1.6 million Americans living with chronic hepatitis B, postponing the birth dose could reverse years of progress and lead to avoidable infections. The vaccine has a decades-long record of safety and effectiveness, virtually eliminating hepatitis B among children since universal newborn immunization began in 2002.

According to state Attorney General Dana Nessel, every state and territorial attorneys general in the United States (55 in total) has unanimously agreed to sign onto a $7.4 billion nationwide settlement with pharmaceutical giant Purdue Pharma and its owners, the Sackler family, over their role in the country’s opioid crisis. The agreement, which would resolve years of litigation, marks the largest settlement to date involving names associated with causing the epidemic. It would permanently end the Sacklers’ control of Purdue and bar them from future opioid sales anywhere in the nation.

Michigan could receive up to $154 million over 15 years to fund addiction prevention, treatment, and recovery programs, with most of the funds distributed in the first three years. Nessel highlighted the progress Michigan has already made from previous settlements with over $1.6 billion secured during her tenure, contributing to a 34% drop in overdose deaths between 2023 and 2024. Final approval of the Purdue settlement now depends on bankruptcy court proceedings and local government participation.