Health Care Law Blog

On October 2, 2020, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that the law upon which Governor Gretchen Whitmer relied to extend the State of Emergency after April 30, 2020 is unconstitutional. The Supreme Court's ruling, which we discuss here, invalidates the Governor's Executive Orders issued during the extended State of Emergency. Executive Order 2020-128, issued on June 18, 2020, established a rebuttable presumption that a "COVID-19 Response Employee" (a term which was not well-defined within the Executive Order) has sustained a compensable injury when he or she is diagnosed with COVID-19. Executive Order 2020-128 contained language quite similar to the March 30, 2020 Emergency Rule issued by the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity ("LEO").

On October 6, 2020, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services ("MDHHS") issued an emergency order (the "MDHHS Order") that retains many of the same requirements that apply to residential care facilities under the previously issued executive orders. As noted in a prior blog post, the Michigan Supreme Court recently held that Governor Whitmer did not have authority after April 30, 2020 to issue or renew any executive orders related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the same requirements will continue to apply to residential care facilities under the MDHHS Order. The MDHHS Order became effective immediately, and will remain in effect through October 30, 2020 (and may be renewed through a subsequent order).