Updates About Public Health

Senator Kevin Hertel (D-St. Clair Shores) has proposed a $1 million allocation for a new “Statewide Fentanyl Enforcement” initiative in the Michigan State Police budget for Fiscal Year 2026. The funding would bolster the department’s existing task force operations, which collaborate with other agencies to identify and prosecute fentanyl traffickers across the state. Hertel noted the investment is a direct response to the increasing impact of fentanyl in Michigan communities.

As the Senate Appropriations Military, Veterans and State Police Subcommittee Chair, Hertel believes the appropriation would provide resources to help MSP and its partners identify fentanyl sources, disrupt distribution networks, and hold traffickers accountable. The subcommittee approved the broader FY 2026 State Police budget, which includes this allocation, on a 2-0 vote.

Michigan is seeing a significant rise in measles and whooping cough cases as childhood vaccination rates decline. In 2024, the state reported over 2,000 cases of whooping cough—a major increase from the previous year—with nearly 700 cases already confirmed in 2025, including more than 100 cases in infants under 2. The state has also seen its first measles outbreak since 2019, totaling nine cases so far.

Vaccination rates for both diseases remain well below recommended thresholds, with only 79% of Michigan children vaccinated against measles and 71% receiving four or more doses of the DTaP vaccine, down from 85% and 77% respectively in 2020. Health officials attribute the resurgence of these preventable diseases to declining immunization rates and increased vaccine hesitancy noticed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Receive updates on the Michigan Measles outbreak in the MDHHS Measles Dashboard.

Attorney General Dana Nessel is part of a 24-state coalition that has successfully secured a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) to stop the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) from terminating nearly $11 billion in federal public health grants — cuts that include more than $379 million originally promised to Michigan. Affected programs include vaccination funding for children, infectious disease prevention, mental health care for those with severe conditions, and opioid treatment for vulnerable populations. The TRO halts those cuts for now, ensuring continued funding while the legal challenge moves forward in federal court.

Members of the coalition, including attorney generals from Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin, plus the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania, argue the terminations were made without proper notice or legal justification.

Specifically, the lawsuit claims DHHS acted unlawfully by ending the grants under the justification that the COVID-19 pandemic has ended — despite Congress not tying the funding to the pandemic’s status. According to state officials, this lack of funding is already disrupting services and creating confusion for health departments and organizations that rely on these dollars.