Michigan withholding report on COVID response: report

The material in the report is so sensitive that state agencies have already reportedly held a "stakeholder's meeting"
The ICU at Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Jan. 2022
By Madeleine Hubbard

An out-of-state company reportedly sent Michigan Democrat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's office a draft several weeks ago of an after-action review of the state's COVID-19 response, but the draft has not been released to the public or the media.

Tidal Basin of Utica, N.Y. completed the draft report, which reportedly analyzed every department and resource involved in Michigan's COVID response, starting in early 2020.

The Whitmer administration is internally circulating the nearly 300-page report, sources told Michigan News Source.

The material in the report is so sensitive that state agencies have already reportedly held a "stakeholder's meeting" and departments were told to review the draft and "correct" any possible problems. 

Michigan News Source said it has filed a Freedom of Information Act request for an unredacted copy of the full draft report, but so far has not received it. 

Gov. Whitmer has been under scrutiny for her response to the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in nursing homes. A report earlier this year from the state's auditor general found that the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services underreported the number of people who died from COVID in long-term care facilities by 30%.