On Hand

Enbridge’s Line 5 crude oil and natural gas pipeline is at the center of a long and bitter struggle. This month, a WI federal judge ordered Enbridge to shut down the stretch that crosses over tribal land. Today we hear two perspectives on what this new decision means. 

GUEST:

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions.

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For the first time since the pandemic, Medicaid beneficiaries are being asked this year to re-verify their eligibility. Millions of people could loose their health insurance across the country. Today, the so-called Medicaid "unwinding", and what it can mean for you and your family.

GUESTS:

Becky McIntyre, Michigan Medicare/Medicaid Assistance Program Coordinator in the Upper Peninsula

Meredith Buhalis, Washtenaw Health Plan Program Manager

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions.

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Hospitals are seeing ongoing staffing shortages. But over the course of the pandemic, they've also seen rising profits. We talk about how and how much hospitals profited during the COVID–19 health emergency.

GUEST:

Matthew Miller, MLive reporter

Read Miller’s stories here, here, and here.

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions.

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The COVID pandemic put a constant strain on doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers. There were long hours, large patient loads, and a constantly changing virus. Now, COVID hospitalizations have eased, but many nurses say their working conditions have not improved. Some say they've only gotten worse. On today's episode, we’re digging into how staffing shortages at Michigan hospitals are pushing nurses out of the field–and what that means for patient care. 

GUESTS: 

Nikia Parker, emergency room nurse and paramedic in the Traverse City region 

Christopher Friese, professor of nursing and director at the Center for Improving Patient and Population Health at the University of Michigan 

Doug Tribou, Morning Edition host at Michigan Radio 

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Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions.

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Water levels among the Great Lakes have fluctuated very, very drastically in the past decade. In 2013, Lake Michigan and Lake Huron saw an all-time low. Within the next seven years, all five lakes set record highs. Lake Ontario even did it twice, setting a record high lake level in 2017, and then breaking that record in 2019. 

A hydrologist explains what over a hundred years of data can reveal about Michigan’s greatest environmental asset. Plus, what it means for the future of us fishers, kayakers, lakefront property owners, and water-drinkers here on land.

GUESTS:

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Beaches are the best. But WHICH beaches are the best? We here in the Great Lakes State have strong feelings about our fine-sand pristine beaches. But host April Baer has thoughts about the majesty of the oceanside. She's wrong... but let's hear her out. It's a pod for all my baddest beaches. 

GUESTS:

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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed the “hands free driving" bill into law on Wednesday, June 7, the second set of legislation in Michigan aimed at reducing distracted driving. The law bans drivers from using a phone for any reason, save for reporting a crime or in another emergency situation.

No more checking your email at a red light, no holding your phone to your ear at a red light, no finding the just-right song in your shuffle. Just driving.

Today, what you need to know about the new law going into effect on June 30. 

GUEST: 

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Music:

"Magic Delights" by Marc Jackson Burrows, courtesy of Audio Network

"Golden Grass" by Sour Mash, courtesy of Blue Dot Sessions

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In 2020, the American Library Association documented 156 attempts to ban or restrict library materials in the U.S. Two years later in 2022, that number spiked to 1,269.  A library law expert walks us through the materials review process, and what free speech looks like in the context of a library.  A reporter joins us to recap how the debate over book censorship has unfolded in Michigan.

GUEST: 

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Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions and Audio Network. 

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The wildfires raging in Canada right now are affecting air quality across the United States. Cities like New York and Detroit had air quality index (or AQI) scores throughout the day that put them on par with some of the highest levels of air pollution across the world. On this episode, we’re looking at the health effects of air pollution from wildfires–and what you can do to keep yourself healthy on bad air days. 

GUEST: 

Sara Adar, associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Michigan School of Public Health

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Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions and Audio Network. 

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Update: Since we've published this podcast, the DNR has said that the Wilderness Trail Fire has been 100% contained.

Over the weekend two wildfires made for road closures, evacuations, and other displacements for people in Crawford and Iosco Counties. Today, we’re talking about wildfires in Michigan and what you can do to prevent them.

GUEST:

Kerry Heckman, public information officer, DNR Incident Management Team

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions.

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