Crain's Detroit Business June 7, 2021, issue by Crain's Detroit Business

VACCINATIONS: Hospitals edge toward requiring employees to get shots. PAGE 3

CONVENTIONS: As COVID ebbs, events business flows. PAGE 24

CRAINSDETROIT.COM I JUNE 7, 2021

THE ROAD TO EXPANSION Ann Arbor-based May Mobility upgrades C-suite, autonomous platform | BY KURT NAGL

NEWSPAPER

Many automakers and tech firms are further along than May Mobility Inc. in the research and development of autonomous vehicle technology, but the Ann Arbor-based company claims to be ahead in one key area: making money. May Mobility isn’t profitable yet, but it is making moves to transition from a bootstrapping startup to a viable business, said Edwin Olson,

CRAIN’S LISTS Beaumont Health tops the list of Michigan’s largest health systems. See the rest of the list on PAGE 23

co-founder and CEO. That change in direction was signaled by another big hire late last month. Ryan Green was installed as the company’s first chief financial officer after being recruited away from Rivian, the electric truck maker reportedly seeking a $70 billion valuation ahead of an expected IPO. See MAY MOBILITY on Page 28

COURTESY OF MAY MOBILITY

HEROISM TAKES MANY FORMS. For 20 years, Crain’s Health Care Heroes have risen to challenges. This year’s honorees rose to challenges beyond the everyday. They stood up field hospitals and mass testing and vaccinations. They conducted research on COVID-19 at a breakneck pace. One team found that your iPhone 12 could threaten your life, and a team of dozens of experts made history in an operation that successfully separated conjoined twins. Uniting them is a commitment to go above and beyond. READ THEIR STORIES: PAGES 11-21

NEED TO KNOW

SPORTS MARKETING

THE WEEK IN REVIEW, WITH AN EYE ON WHAT’S NEXT WHITMER PROPOSES STEERING AID TO HIGHER WAGES THE NEWS: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Thursday proposed spending $300 million in federal COVID-19 funding to help Michigan businesses pay workers $15 an hour. State grants would cover the difference between an employee’s current hourly wage and $15 for three months, as long as the business committed to continuing the $15 wage for at least three additional months. Whitmer included the wage proposal in an economic plan she unveiled at a women’s business center in Grand Rapids. WHY IT MATTERS: The proposal comes as negotiations with the Republican-controlled Legislature over allocating billions in federal coronavirus aid are ongoing. It also comes at a time when a worker shortage has hampered numerous industries.

 PISTONS HIRE EX-UM COACH BEILEIN AS ADVISER THE NEWS: The Detroit Pistons hired John Beilein as a senior adviser for player development Wednesday, saying the hope is that the former NBA and University of Michigan coach can help the young team “maximize its potential.” Owner Tom Gores credited coach Dwane Casey for the decision to add the 68-yearold Beilein.

Beilein

WHY IT MATTERS: “There is nothing more important to our franchise right now than the growth and development of our players,” Gores said. “Having spent time with John, we all know he is one of the best teachers in the game of basketball at any level.”

 ALLY FINANCIAL SAYS IT WILL END OVERDRAFT FEES THE NEWS: Ally Financial said Wednesday that it is ending overdraft fees entirely on all of its bank products, becoming the first large U.S. bank to do so across its entire business. WHY IT MATTERS: It’s a major move by Detroit-based Ally, one of the nation’s largest banks, and for the industry, which has been reliant on overdraft fees for decades to boost profits, often at the expense of poorer Americans who can’t afford to pay such fees in the first place.

 COUNCIL APPROVED ARMORY SITE SALE TO PARADE CO. THE NEWS: The Detroit City Council has approved the sale of the R. Thorn-

ton Brodhead Naval Armory property to The Parade Co. The redevelopment would see the back portion of the armory demolished and a 130,000-square-foot addition built in its place. WHY IT MATTERS: The approvals mark another step forward for The Parade Co.’s planned redevelopment of the historic armory site on the Detroit River, where the nonprofit plans a $36.5 million project that would result in tearing down much of the building for a new headquarters at 7650 E. Jefferson Ave. across from Belle Isle.

UWM takes up residence on Pistons’ jerseys  United Wholesale Mortgage Corp. will become the new jersey sponsor of the Detroit Pistons, the NBA team and Pontiac-based company announced Thursday morning. UWM (NYSE: UWMC), the nation’s largest wholesale mortgage lender, replaces Troy-based Flagstar Bancorp. (NYSE: FBC), which is undergoing an acquisition by a New York City-area bank. UWM will also be the “exclusive mortgage partner” for the team, according to the release. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The deal allows for increased exposure for UWM, the nation’s fourth-largest mortgage lender which last year closed more than $182.5 billion in loans and accounted for 4.5 percent of the mortgage market, according to trade publication Inside Mortgage Finance.

 ESPERION SETTLES 5-YEAR-OLD LAWSUIT THE NEWS: The plaintiffs in a 5-yearold lawsuit alleging securities fraud against an Ann Arbor drugmaker could get a settlement later this summer. The class action lawsuit, filed in May 2016, alleges that Esperion Therapeutics Inc. and its CEO Tim Mayleben, made false and misleading statements to investors in 2015, and failed to disclose certain information to investors about the company’s path toward regulatory approval for its cholesterol-lowering drugs. WHY IT MATTERS: The settlement resolves an issue that predated federal approval of Esperion’s drugs, which are now on the market.

The UWM jersey patch. | CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

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TECHNOLOGY

HEALTH CARE

Henry Ford spin-out firm nabs $3.2M in VC backing Focus is on tracking staff, equipment BY NICK MANES

CALLING THE SHOTS Susan Grant administers a first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine to Dr. Rajiv John at Beaumont Service Center in Southfield in December. | NIC ANTAYA FOR CRAIN’S DETROIT)

Health systems mull how, when to require vaccines for their workers BY DUSTIN WALSH

The dominoes are falling. Health systems around the country are starting to mandate the COVID-19 vaccines for employees. Houston Methodist announced its mandate last month. Indiana University Health announced last week all employees must be inoculated by Sept. 1. It is all but inevitable that Michigan’s health systems will follow suit and mandate the COVID-19 vaccines for their employees as well. The only question is when. Bob Riney, president of hospital operations and COO for Henry Ford Health System, said administrators for the six-hospital system based in Detroit will make the decision to mandate this summer.

“We are in active discussions moving toward a mandate,” Riney said. “We are all enjoying this incredible reduction in active virus right now. But as all the infectious disease experts are predicting, (COVID-19) could cycle back in the fall. The way to control that is to get the vaccination rates high. We would want to be ahead in the fall.” On June 2, the seven-day rolling average of newly diagnosed cases of COVID-19 in Michigan fell to its lowest point in about 10 months to 527. COVID-19 deaths dropped to a seven-day rolling average of 26, the lowest point since October before the fall surge. At Henry Ford, only one employee was diagnosed with the deadly coronavirus between May 26 and June 1, down from 15 the week prior.

Patience and prizes Roughly 67 percent of the state’s hospital employees are fully vaccinated, according to the Michigan Health & Hospital Association. While a mandate for most health systems is likely, administrators are waiting for various influencing factors to reduce the number of unvaccinated health system workers before implementing the mandates, said Brian Peters, CEO of the Michigan Health & Hospital Association. “I think the hope is that we can get at close to that magical herd immunity number before requiring a mandate,” Peters said. “The best scenario here is folks step forward voluntarily and do what we think is the right thing.” See VACCINES on Page 28

“WE ARE IN ACTIVE DISCUSSIONS MOVING TOWARD A MANDATE. ... WE WOULD WANT TO BE AHEAD IN THE FALL.” — Bob Riney, Henr y Ford Health

With just over $3 million in new venture capital funding, a Detroit-based health care technology startup seeks to make all manner of wayfinding in hospitals much more user-friendly. Navv Systems Inc., born out of Henry Ford Health System, seeks to use the injection of a $3.2 million venture capital seed round to bolster its pipeline of health care systems focused on Siegal better tracking of equipment and personnel, as well as helping patients and guests better navigate the complex facilities. The first institutional investment round for Navv Systems was led by noted health care venture fund Arboretum Ventures out of Ann Arbor and included participation from Detroit Venture Partners and Narrow Gauge Ventures, also out of Ann Arbor. As a trained physician, Navv Systems CEO Dr. Daniel Siegal said he knows first-hand the frustration of finding needed equipment or hospital staff in the sprawling facilities. “There’s a ton of frustration, not knowing where the things we need are in order to provide care,” Siegal said during an interview with Crain’s last week. “That can be people, that can be equipment, or it can be literally just finding your way through a big complicated building. And if you’ve spent any time within a hospital, you have probably gotten lost or you probably know someone who’s gotten lost. And when people show up late to appointments, there’s this snowball effect, and it causes all kinds of challenges ... for patients, providers, health care systems.” See TRACKING on Page 28

RETAIL

As corporate Pride marketing proliferates, LGBTQ entrepreneurs carve out space BY ANNALISE FRANK

As corporations debut more rainbow-streaked merchandise each year for Pride Month, small businesses and LGBTQ advocates want buyers and sellers to think more about where dollars are being spent and who benefits. Target Corp. may be offering a rainbow suit this month — plus rainbow candles, a rainbow dog bandana and “Love is Love” T-shirts, but there’s also a community of smallscale, LGBTQ-owned entrepreneurs and artists in metro Detroit with gear for June who are trying to make a living and want to be seen.

“If you’re celebrating a heritage month or observation month you’ll want to do business within that community,” said Kevin Heard, president of the Detroit Regional Heard LGBT Chamber of Commerce. “We want to make sure the money that you and I go and spend … is actually going back to an LGBT-owned business.” Heading toward the 52nd anniversary of the historic June 1969 Stonewall

uprising — a major origin of the fight for American LGBTQ rights — the way Pride Month is commemorated has been up for discussion for years. Participants have been reckoning with the inclusion of corporate interests in what originated as protests against violations by police and mainstream culture writ large; to what extent it’s OK that Pride Month has for many become a huge party; how to honor the many deceased activists of the movement, and more. Huge, for many, is self expression: clothes, flags, patches, earrings and so-on. See LGBTQ on Page 27

Milford resident Jasper Richter sells LGBTQ merchandise using this booth at fairs and online through a website and Etsy.com. The booth, featuring hats designed with the colors of different LGBTQ identities, is pictured at Toledo Pride in August 2019. | JASPER RICHTER JUNE 7, 2021 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | 3

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Now on market, what’s next for Grand Army of the Republic Building? One of the more unique historic renovation projects in the last 15 years in downtown Detroit has hit the market for sale for an undisclosed price (yes, Kirk you can lease it, PINHO too). The castleesque Grand Army of the Republic Building at 1942 Grand River Ave. at Cass Avenue is owned by Tom Carleton, David Carleton and Sean Emery, who paid the city of Detroit $220,500 for it in 2011 — more on that later — and spent $4 million renovating its 22,000 square feet over the course of 2012-15. Also on the table are the Parks & Rec Diner and Republic Tavern restaurants on the five-story building’s first floor, which a buyer could reopen under their existing concepts or reimagine entirely as new dining establishments. The Carletons and Emery own those as well. “They are certainly closing down and we are seeing who has another exciting concept for the building,” David Carleton said of the restaurant space. “We’re not restaurateurs by nature. We felt it was really important to create restaurants in there that supported the history of the building, the integrity of the building.” The Detroit office of brokerage house Colliers International Inc. has the listing on the property. The owners said five letters — OK, five letters, a hyphen and two numbers — marked the turning point for the trio’s ownership in the building: COVID-19. “They came to the realization that

there may be a better steward for this building who can use it, whereas they are working remote at the moment and for the foreseeable future,” said Benji Rosenzweig, a vice president for Colliers who is working on the sale along with his colleague Ben Hubert. The owners’ primary business is Mindfield Inc., a Detroit-based event-based video creation firm headquartered in the GAR Building, as it is commonly known.

“THEY CAME TO THE REALIZATION THAT THERE MAY BE A BETTER STEWARD FOR THIS BUILDING WHO CAN USE IT, WHEREAS THEY ARE WORKING REMOTE AT THE MOMENT AND FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE.” — Benji Rosenzweig, vice president , Colliers

“We went from a fully occupied building pre-COVID with popular restaurants. Mindfield was booming, working on untold number of auto shows annually, and with the stroke of a virus, everything was stopped,” David Carleton said during a Zoom chat. Hubert said the renovation included new windows, mechanical and HVAC systems, elevators and other improvements. “This is a building that somebody’s not going to have to put anything into,” Hubert said. Mindfield takes the fourth and fifth

floors, while the third floor is for Vectorform and the second floor is event space and other usage for the two restaurants. The GAR Building was built starting in 1899 and ending in 1901 effectively as “a hangout for the city’s Civil War veterans,” according to Historic Detroit, which tracks Detroit buildings and architecture. As the years wore on and the war’s veterans began to die off, the building, constructed on land deeded to the city by former Michigan Gov. Lewis Cass, became sporadically used, Historic Detroit says. It closed in 1982 after being a hub for the city’s Parks and Recreation Department — hence the name of the diner — for years. The building’s next 30 years involved things like a quiet title, the Michigan Monumental Buildings Act of 1889, the Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War, and perhaps the most familiar face in historic Detroit building battles: the Ilitches. While the city awarded the building — they were one of six bidders, including the current ownership — to the pizza-making dynasty in 2006 with a $220,000 purchase price, that agreement was later rescinded after they did nothing with the property, according to Historic Detroit. That’s when the Carletons and Emery re-entered the picture. At $220,500. Let’s see what they are able to fetch a decade later, as a global pandemic continues but as the state begins reopening offices and restaurants after being shuttered or in varying stages of flux for the last 16 months. Contact: kpinho@crain.com; (313) 446-0412; @kirkpinhoCDB

FINANCE

PPP closes with nearly $24.5B awarded to MI small businesses BY NICK MANES

As the COVID-19 pandemic looks to be heading toward a close in much of the U.S., so too has a small business relief program set up in the early, chaotic days as a means of bolstering businesses faced with a sharp drop in revenue. The U.S. Small Business Administration on Tuesday announced that the Paycheck Protection Program had been officially closed to new loan applications. First created in spring of 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic took hold, leading to a slew of government-mandated business closures, the PPP was

part of the federal CARES Act relief legislation. The PPP aimed to offer potentially forgivable loans to businesses impacted by the pandemic for payroll and certain other costs including utilities and rent. The program approved more than 11.8 million loans totaling nearly $800 billion to small businesses, nonprofits — as well as some larger businesses — since applications opened April 3, 2020, SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman said in a statement on Tuesday. SBA data shows that Michigan businesses, over the life of the program, have received 305,152 PPP loans totaling nearly $24.5 billion.

Nationwide, the SBA approved about $521.2 billion in PPP loans in 2020. Of that, just more than half — or $279.4 billion — has been forgiven, according to SBA data as of May 24. The SBA figures show that $1 billion in loans made last year were denied forgiveness; another $81.5 billion in loans remains under review, and business owners holding loans totaling nearly $160 billion in loans have not yet applied for forgiveness. A breakdown of forgiveness data for Michigan was not available. The average loan size, nationally, for 2021 has been $42,000. “I’ve heard story after story from small business owners across the

country about how PPP funds helped them keep the lights on, pay their employees — and gave them hope,” Guzman said in the statement. “At the same time, millions of underserved businesses — particularly our smallest businesses and those owned by women and people of color — were left out of early rounds of relief. I’m proud of the work we did to begin to rectify these inequities — in 2021, 96 (percent) of PPP loans went to small businesses with fewer than 20 employees. Moving forward, we will continue to prioritize equity in all SBA’s programs and services.” The early weeks of the program were marred by confusion, with busi-

ness owners, bankers and other advisers trying to learn the ins and outs of the nascent programs together. Last summer, after an initial data drop by the U.S. Treasury Department of early loan recipients, many expressed anger — or “PPP shaming” — of larger businesses that had qualified for loans under the program. Some returned the loans. Crain Communications, the Detroit-based parent company of Crain’s Detroit Business, received a PPP loan in the range of $5 million to $10 million. Contact: nmanes@crain.com; (313) 446-1626; @nickrmanes

CRAIN’S AWARDS

Nominate a rising star in health care Know an emerging leader in health care? We're looking for innovative upand-comers in the health care space who have made significant contributions to the profession, their organizations and the community. Ideal nominees are earlyto-mid-career senior level administrative or clinical professionals or on the path to a leadership role. We'll honor winners in a special section on October 4. To nominate someone for Notable Rising Stars in Health Care Leadership, visit crainsdetroit. com/nominate. Nominations are due July 6. Questions? Contact Special Projects Editor Amy Bragg: abragg@ crain.com.

CRAIN’S AWARDS

Nominations closing soon for Notable LGBTQ Business Leaders There's still time to nominate a Notable LGBTQ Business Leader. Crain's will honor senior-level business leaders who self-identify as LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning or another underrepresented sexual orientation or gender identity) and have made significant contributions to their industry and their community. Winners will be recognized in a special section in Crain's on September 6. The deadline to nominate someone is June 14. Nominees will be invited to complete a separate and more in-depth candidate application. Questions? Contact Special Projects Editor Amy Bragg: abragg@ crain.com.

A CRAIN’S HERO FOR 2021. A WAYNE STATE HERO EVERY SINGLE DAY. Infectious disease specialist and Wayne State University School of Medicine Professor of Internal Medicine Teena Chopra has just earned Crain’s Healthcare Hero Award for 2021. Last year, her research and expertise helped to educate many and to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in Detroit, around the nation and throughout the world. But for Dr. Chopra, that kind of leadership and compassion didn’t suddenly occur during a pandemic. It happens every day. The School of Medicine is proud to celebrate Dr. Chopra’s achievement — and even prouder to count her among the thousands at Wayne State who constantly demonstrate what it means to be Warrior Strong. Congratulations.

wayne.edu

JUNE 7, 2021 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | 5

FOOD & DRINK

Argentinian flair heads for Core City Distillery opening, beer comeback and more highlights BY JAY DAVIS

What is being billed as Detroit’s first authentic Argentinian-inspired restaurant will open for business later this month. Barda, from Chef Javier Bardauil and co-owner Ignacio Gerson, is set for a June 10 opening in the Core City area at 4842 Grand River Ave. Meals at Barda, Bardauil’s nickname, are prepared over open fire using methods of Patagonian cooking. Menu highlights at the 3,200-square-foot restaurant include glazed beets with ajoblanco and raspberries; chorizo Argentino with fennel and lemon; tira de asado, tender short rib with pepper-coriander crust; and carne y hueso with bone marrow, beef tartare and horseradish served with toast. An assortment of grills with varying flame intensities are used for each dish. Barda, with indoor seating for 113 guests and a 40-seat patio, also offers an expansive beverage program led by bartenders Roger James Fruin and Robert Wilson. The menu features a selection of Argentinian wines, South American-inspired libations and local craft beers. Fernet, an Argentinian spirit, is the heart of many house cocktails including the Smoke & Fire. Barda will operate 5-11 p.m. Thursday-Sunday, with the final reservation available at 9:30 p.m.

The restaurant is hiring for support staff and has one team member position available. Interested parties can email positions@bardadetroit.com.

Distillery opening in Clawson Dennis Weiss, a partner in Sabbath Coffee in Clawson, is set to open Weiss Distilling Co. this summer. The distillery, which will also feature a retail Weiss shop, “Weiss Ice” creation area, a speakeasy, theater and event services, will open in phases. The retail annex will open first and feature proprietary spirits, including Vanishing Vodka. The bar, speakeasy lounge and theater, all to be located in a 5,300-square-foot space at 34 E. 14 Mile Road, will follow. New York distiller John LaDuke will serve as master distiller. LaDuke got his start at Cooperstown Distillery and will lead the creation of Weiss Distilling Co.’s proprietary gin, absinthe, whiskey, bourbon, vodka and other spirits. Weiss Distilling Co., with indoor seating for 40 patrons, offers guests

an intimate spirits experience with design elements including low and neon lighting, wood tones and brass, copper and gold accents. Many of the design elements, including custom liquor lockers, were envisioned by Weiss and his wife, Amanda. The space, formerly home to 24G and Great Sport Coffee, was demolished and is being rebuilt. Weiss is investing about $2 million in the project, including $1.4 million for the building and $500,000 for equipment. Weiss will hire 20 staffers to fill fulland part-time roles. Email jobs@ thewdc.com. The distillery will operate Thursday-Sunday, with hours of operation to be determined. An opening date and final spirits list will be announced soon.

Century-old beer making a comeback A beer brewed in Detroit at the turn of the 20th century is now available at most Meijer locations in Michigan. Meijer carries 12-packs of the Altes Original Detroit Lager, a craftbrewed Bavarian-style lager, originally brewed in 1910 by Tivoli Brewing Co. Detroit National Brewing Company LLC dba Altes Detroit Brewing Co. recrafted and reintro-

Barda, which specializes in Argentinian-inspired cuisine, will open in Detroit on June 10. | STUNTMAN PR

Just like you, we’re here for your employees.

6 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | JUNE 7, 2021 BCB144280_MSG_Print_Crains_DB_6-7-21_Insertion_F2.indd 1

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duced the beer in 2019, according to the company website. The independently owned Altes became Michigan’s top-selling beer in the 1940s, and by the 1960s had secured sponsorships with the Detroit Lions and Detroit Tigers. The brand was eventually retired in the 1990s. In 2011, friends Eric Stief, Carl Erickson, and Pat Kruse, all metro Detroit natives, enlisted the help of the brewers at Traffic Jam & Snug in Midtown to revive the Altes name and beer. They developed a recipe that would pay tribute to Altes’ history as a Michigan brand, but as a premium craft lager that could also compete with today’s burgeoning craft beer market, which includes more than 7,500 brewers nationwide. The brewers are also developing Altes Sportsman Copper Lager as a second renewed product. Altes is now sold in more than 1,500 stores, restaurants, bars and other locations in Michigan.

ates seasonally and as weather permits 10 a.m.-3 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday. The brand is also growing. Bea’s lemonade is available at retailers across 25 states, including at Meijer, Kroger, BJ’s Wholesale Club, Plum Market and Busch’s Fresh Food Market in Michigan.

Crab Du Jour coming to Fairlane mall Altes Original Detroit Lager is making a comeback. | FRANKLIN PUBLICITY INC.

Bea’s Squeeze adds slushies, walk-up window

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Bea’s Detroit has installed a lemonade to-go window at its Eastern Market location at 1533 Winder St. Bea’s, which recently reopened its Bea’s Squeeze lemonade stand in the Dequindre Cut, has added the Bea’s Squeeze Freeze, as it turns its lemonade into slushies. Bea’s Squeeze began selling bottled lemonade to cyclists and walkers in the Dequindre Cut in 2019. It oper-

A seafood restaurant with a large footprint along the East Coast is headed to metro Detroit. Crab Du Jour is planning an early July opening for its new location at Fairlane Town Center, its first in Michigan. The cajun-style seafood restaurant and bar, known for its Du Jour sauce, touts its fresh, affordable seafood and seafood boil bags. The restaurant, taking over an 8,000-square-foot space formerly occupied by a Bravo! Italian Kitchen, has seating for 350 guests. Crab Du Jour is investing $3 million into the project and will bring 80 jobs to the area, but is not actively hiring. The chain has more than 100 locations.

Send us your tips and news

Bea’s Detroit in the Eastern Market district added a walk-up window. | BEA’S DETROIT

Tell us about restaurant and bar openings and closings, new product lines, new owners and chefs, bakeries, markets, suppliers and more. If you have something to share about the local food and drink scene, email jason.davis@crain.com and/or bvalone@crain.com.

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JUNE 7, 2021 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | 7 5/28/21 11:50 AM

COMMENTARY

DANIEL SAAD FOR CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS

The late Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson was a supporter of Michigan’s no-fault auto insurance law..

We’re about to find out if Brooks Patterson was right “If they believe their charges are customary and reasonable, make the case,” Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey said in an interview. “There’s nobody that wants anybody’s standard of care to be reduced. If they think they’re providing services that can meet the challenge of customary and reasonable, go contract with them.” That’s nonsense, said Matthew Gibb, a former Oakland County deputy executive who helped Patterson block previous efforts to gut auto insurance medical benefits. “Why would the insurance industry negotiate against itself?” Gibb asked. “If the statutory cap places it (at 55 percent), then why would they say, ‘Oh, we’ll give you guys a break?’” “I mean, that’s not going to work,” Gibb added. “It’s fundamental business.” Gibb, who is now an economic consultant, concluded in a recent analysis that the new law’s mandatory cap on provider rates would result in 14,810 lost jobs for registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and high-tech home health aides. The direct and indirect annual economic impact of these job losses would top $1.47 billion, Gibb said. Shirkey, a businessman and engineer by trade, has repeatedly said he wants to see “data” showing whether the law is working. “The data I’m looking for is do we really lose the providers that are being threatened to go out of business,” the Jackson County Republican said. For medical providers and their few vocal supporters in the Legislature’s Republican majority, this is a head-scratching approach: Let them go out of business on July 2 and then reconsider the premise of cutting their rates. It’s a new twist on the infamous let-Detroitgo-bankrupt strategy. “I can’t imagine a more potentially dangerous policy,” said Sen. Jim Runestad, a White Lake Township Republican who has spent weeks pleading with Shirkey and other GOP leaders to reconsider the ramifications of the new fee schedule. Runestad said he’s concerned where someone who relies on in-home caregivers for bathing, toileting, feeding and moving around will go if attendant care companies shut down as promised next month. There are seven nursing homes in Michigan with the proper accreditations where catastrophically injured motorists

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Bills can help independent pharmacies TO THE EDITOR: Local pharmacies are an integral piece of a community’s public health system. Right now, as we deal with an over-burdened health care delivery system, our health and well-being are top of mind. Local pharmacies offer something that nobody else can: trusted, personalized care, unlike many bigbrand names. Sadly though, independent pharmacies have been under attack. They are overwhelmed by the everchanging prescription drug market and the administrative burdens that come with it. Most frequently, pharmacists are forced to try and defend themselves against groups like pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) that take advantage of their small size. As an independent pharmacist myself, I can say with confidence that independent pharmacists would much rather spend their time caring for the needs of their patients but instead spend a good part of their day jumping through hoops in an effort to meet the

See LIVENGOOD on Page 26

Write us: Crain’s welcomes responses from readers. Letters should be as brief as possible and may be edited for length or clarity. Send letters to Crain’s Detroit Business, 1155 Gratiot Ave, Detroit, MI 48207, or email crainsdetroit@crain.com. Please include your complete name, city from which you are writing and a phone number for fact-checking purposes. 8 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | JUNE 7, 2021

ever-changing demands of the PBMs. In an effort to navigate through the maze the PBM’s have created for us, we have partnered with groups like Pharmacy Services Administrative Organizations (PSAOs), business structures that sprung up in response to the need for small businesses like mine, to have a voice in dealing with the tedious administrative work and contract negotiations. However, PBMs still have too much power. With HB 4348 moving through Michigan’s Legislature, PBMs will finally have increased oversight and restrictions placed on them, helping to keep community pharmacists in business. It is important, though, that this bill does not include language that would restrict the activities of PSAOs. They remain one of the few groups working for our side and we need them to be able to operate in their current form so we can provide the best care possible to our patients. Harvey Schmidt Schmidt Pharmacy Tecumseh

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n 2013, the late Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson dispatched his deputies to the state Capitol to convince lawmakers that changing Michigan’s nofault auto insurance law would lead to thousands Chad jobs. LIVENGOOD of lost The argument was persuasive. Michigan was just a few years removed from the Great Recession and job growth was frustratingly slow. The specter of less-than-guaranteed lower auto insurance rates triggering the losses of thousands of jobs in health care — a growth sector — was not the least bit politically appetizing, especially in vote-rich Oakland County. Once again, Patterson thwarted another effort to upend Michigan’s unique limitless medical benefits for catastrophically injured motorists — less than a year after barely surviving an accident that paralyzed his driver and left him to mostly use a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Fast forward eight years: Patterson is gone, the so-called “Brooks caucus” of Oakland County Republicans has been weakened after Democrats made gains in the past two elections, and the rehab and direct care industry built up around the no-fault law is on the brink of potential disaster. The Legislature’s current Republican leaders appear to be unmoved by the possibility that Michigan’s health care sector could shed thousands of jobs starting in July when a 2019 law takes effect, imposing 45 percent cuts in provider rates. They seem even less concerned about the thousands of vulnerable residents whose lives depend on a specialized care that can only be found in Michigan thanks to limitless medical benefits for auto accident victims. Brain injury clinics such as the Eisenhower Center in Ann Arbor are already giving patients the equivalent of eviction notices for the end of June. Home health agencies plan to stop sending nurse aides to the homes of paraplegics once the new rates kick in. The new talking point from legislative leaders is these medical providers should be negotiating directly with every auto insurer approved to sell policies in Michigan (there are 135 of them) on medical rates above the 55 percent cap that they wrote into the law.

Sound off: Crain’s considers longer opinion pieces from guest writers on issues of interest to business readers. Email ideas to Managing Editor Michael Lee at malee@crain.com.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Let’s make sure we have integrity in next voting cycle TO THE EDITOR: After reading Barbara McQuade’s op-ed in the May 24 edition of Crain’s Detroit Business titled “Let’s not make it harder to vote in Michigan,” I thought that expressing an opposing viewpoint was warranted. Unfortunately, in the national discussion regarding voting integrity, there is a tendency by those in the media and on the liberal left to paint conservatives in general as conspiracy theorists and Republican lawmakers in particular of trying to enact laws that suppress the vote. Nothing could be further from the truth. As the son of a lifelong civics teacher, I have always advocated that Election Day every two years should be declared a national holiday much like the Fourth of July. No more excuses for not voting. ... no more inconvenience of having to take time off work, get babysitters etc. Let everyone vote, preferably in person, but by absentee if they choose. But it all comes with one caveat … there needs to be credibility in the voting process, so that all members of our civil society have faith in both the integrity of the election and its outcome. In 2020, a countless number of Americans feel that government used the threat of COVID-19 as an excuse for severe overreaches in many areas of our lives. How the vote was conducted in the last election was no exception. Per the Constitution, elections are to be controlled by state legislatures, not governors, secretaries of state or election officials. Yet that was all beside the point in the era of COVID. New election laws are simply intended to correct those situations and put back integrity into the system. As with all proposed laws, they should be scrutinized and debated fairly by both sides of the political aisle. But for the opponents of voting laws passed by the legislatures in Georgia, Texas, Florida and other states to say that absentee voter signature verification, in person voter ID, limited use of drop boxes, limits on early voting and the like are a form of voter suppression, or worse Jim Crow II, as our president has declared, is an absolute insult to any reasonable person’s intelligence in 2021. Take the issue of voter ID for example: A photo ID is required to buy alcohol, cash a check, drive a car, obtain medical care or fly on a plane, to name just a few. Rather than claim it’s a form of voter suppression to require a voter ID, why not make it easy to obtain, and free, like the Georgia law did? There are multiple ways to ensure that anyone who wants a photo ID can get one. Furthermore, according to conservative black columnist Jason Riley writing in the Wall Street Journal, there is little evidence to support the fear mongering by Democrats concerning minority voter suppression. In fact, evidence to the contrary continues to mount. He asks “why is the black electorate treated like helpless children,” when support for requiring people to prove they are who they say they are prior to voting is not controversial along Democratic, Republican, liberal, conservative or Black and white lines … but only inside the bubble of liberal activists and their friends in the political press are those ideas obsessed over. In closing, McQuade’s assertion that nothing went wrong in the 2020 elec-

tion in Michigan is comparable to Democrats claiming there is no correlation between the federal government handing out an extra $300 per week in unemployment benefits and the continuing frustration experienced by Michigan employers across multiple industries who complain that it’s nearly impossible to find minimum wage employees who want to work. The disingenuous arguments for purely a partisan narrative simply need to stop. … it is high time for this country to have an open, honest dialogue about a host of issues whereby opposing viewpoints are not just canceled out of the public forum. Jack Coury Grosse Pointe Shores

Bills urgent first step to restoring trust in Michigan elections TO THE EDITOR: With all due respect to Barbara McQuade, I strongly disagree with her position against the package of election reform bills in Lansing. There is no higher priority at this moment, regardless of party, than ensuring the integrity of future elections in Michigan. In her recent commentary, “Let’s Not Make it Harder to Vote in Michigan,” Ms. McQuade asserts that there were no problems in the 2020 election. That simply isn’t true. Irregularities were rampant, including real questions regarding the authenticity of ballots, violations of counting and observation procedures, and im-

These two things are not mutually exclusive, and there is a high obligation to do both — because every fraudulent vote steals a real vote, and elections without enforced controls ultimately undermine the voting rights of us all. The package of bills in Lansing is an urgent first step to restoring trust in our Michigan elections. The proposals are reasonable and do not make it harder to cast an honest vote. I encourage your readers to get the facts for themselves and to urge their state legislators to make the package of election reform bills their highest priority. Laura Luke Milford

proper connection of voting machines to the internet. Sadly, these problems were never investigated in any meaningful way. The audits Ms. McQuade references were not forensic audits (as are now happening in Arizona) and therefore were largely meaningless. Similarly, the majority of court cases were dismissed on procedural grounds, not for lack of evidence. It is more than fair to want to ensure that these problems are not repeated in future elections. People of every political stripe want voting to be made as easy and convenient as possible (especially during a pandemic), but they also want absolute confidence that no one is cheating.

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Henry Ford Health System celebrates the incredible accomplishments of our over 33,000 team members. During the most challenging of years, our team has helped lead the region in superior care and value. Recently, three of these accomplishments were recognized by Crain’s Detroit Business for their beneficial impact on the communities we serve. These include:

COVID-19 EXPLAINER

Our Chief Clinical Officer, Adnan Munkarah, M.D., provided exceptional public education on COVID-19 throughout the pandemic.

MEDICAL RESEARCH INNOVATION

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LEADING THE WAY, EVERY DAY

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Our President & CEO, Wright Lassiter III, was recognized for groundbreaking living wage implementation in the fall of 2020.

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This year marks 20 years of Crain's Health Care Heroes. It's a special cohort of winners that reflects the extra mile every health care worker has gone during the COVID-19 pandemic. Here you will meet a pediatric researcher studying MIS-C, the inflammatory syndrome that has emerged in some children who have had COVID; the team that stood up Detroit’s first drive-through COVID testing site; and an environmental services leader whose team has stepped up to keep hospital bed spaces available (and elevator buttons sanitized) during several surges of the virus. Other notable achievements include a groundbreaking 11-hour surgery to separate conjoined twins, a study on the effect of iPhones on cardiac devices and a nurse rooting out systemic racism in health care by developing better intake protocols. Winners were selected from nominations and judged by a panel of health care professionals: ` Gina Buccalo, M.D., Chief Medical Officer, UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust; 2020 Health Care Hero ` Latonya Riddle-Jones, M.D., Medical Director, Corktown Health Center; 2020 Health Care Hero ` Leslie Walton, D.O., Corporate Medical Director, North American Partners in Anesthesia; 2020 40 Under 40 Know a rising star in health care? Nominations for Notable Rising Stars in Health Care are open through July 6. You can nominate someone here. WINNER | PHYSICIAN

Jocelyn Ang, M.D. Pediatric Infectious Diseases Specialist, Children’s Hospital of Michigan

t Children’s Hospital of Michigan in Detroit, physician Jocelyn Ang has been treating children with COVID-19 and related problems since the pandemic first hit. The hospital’s patients had a hospitalization rate more than 25 times the national average, and more than a third of the children hospitalized required critical care, she said. The vast majority of the hospital’s patients are underrepresented racial minorities, 84 percent of them African American, she added. In May 2020, a few weeks after COVID peaked in different communities, health care providers around the country started to see children who had COVID later develop symptoms that seemed like Kawasaki disease, an inflammatory disease. Children with severe cases had heart dysfunction and organ failure, for example. “These patients were admitted to the ICU with Kawasaki-like features with multisystem inflammation,” but health care providers weren’t quite sure what was going on, Ang said. Now this condition is known as multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children or MIS-C, and it can cause inflammation in the heart, lungs,

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brain, kidneys, gastrointestinal organs and other organs. Because COVID and MIS-C were so new at the time, there wasn’t much guidance available. “There were no available studies, even until now, comparing the treatment modality to assess which specific treatment is the most effective and safe,” Ang said. Most institutions started developing their own treatment protocols, typically using intravenous immunoglobulin, or IVIG, first and then steroids. But there are side effects associated with high-dose steroids, including slowed heart rate, increased white blood cell count, and hallucinations, and they require a prolonged period to taper off the steroids, Ang said. Based on their experience with a different drug called infliximab, Ang and her colleagues developed a protocol that used it following IVIG, in place of steroids, and patients responded well. “Our treatment plan with infliximab avoided the long tapering course of the steroids,” she said. Some providers are reluctant to use infliximab because of its long halflife, which means it is not easily reversed and it could leave the patient

vulnerable to infection, Ang said. But she and her colleagues have not seen problems with infection. They published a report on their initial experience treating MIS-C with infliximab. Now, Ang is continuing to research treatments for MIS-C, hoping to advance the science. She is collaborating with researchers at the University of California San Diego on a study comparing three different treatments, including infliximab and steroids, to see which combination of therapy is the most safe and effective in reducing mortality and morbidity in children with MIS-C. She is also participating in a multicenter clinical trial that compares patients with MIS-C and patients with Kawasaki disease, to help providers tell the difference and treat the patients appropriately, as well as a study on using monoclonal antibodies to treat COVID. Ang aims to help advance the treatment options available for all children with MIS-C and COVID-19 infection and make sure Children’s Hospital of Michigan patients have access to cutting-edge treatment. Allison Torres Burtka Special to Crain’s Detroit Business

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JUNE 7, 2021 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | 11

WINNER | CORPORATE ACHIEVEMENT

Wayne Health

s physician leaders at multi- ed showing up at hospital ERs and specialty academic practice urgent care centers with COVID-19 Wayne Health started to see symptoms, many with other diseases the first positive coronavirus cases such as hypertension, heart disease reach Michigan in early March 2020, and diabetes. “It became apparent that there they understood front-line health care workers would be among the were these hot spots in Detroit and we needed to extend that out to the first to be infected. community and proDr. Charles Shanley, vide testing,” said ShanCEO of Wayne Health, ley, a vascular surgeon. huddled with other docLevy said the protors like Dr. Phillip Levy, gram has grown trethe group’s chief innovamendously from severtion officer, to come up al dozen volunteers with a plan to combat who staffed a drivewhat many infectious through testing site at disease experts were alWayne Health’s new ready expecting to be a clinic and headquarters difficult epidemic. at 400 Mack Ave. to Levy, who also is an ER about 150 paid workers doctor at Detroit Medical and five mobile testing Center and a professor at Dr. Charles Shanley vehicles. Wayne State University, “The project really was born out of developed and led the organized effort to begin a testing program for not the need to do something in response only the health care workforce in De- to how COVID was hitting the comtroit, but also police officers and fire- munity,” Levy said. “Obviously, people were getting sick, but the results fighters. “It was a natural extension of our have a lot of collateral impact” on commitment to the Detroit commu- people with chronic diseases. Levy said Wayne Health and nity, especially the vulnerable,” Shanley said. “When the pandemic hit last Wayne State University’s School of spring, Phil and I saw the biggest Medicine have long been dedicated challenge as maintaining the health to addressing health disparities in care first responder workforce. We Black and other underserved populations. targeted our initial efforts there.” Wayne Health doctors realized It wasn’t long before people start-

12 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | JUNE 7, 2021

Wayne Health’s fleet of mobile clinics has expanded to five vehicles. | WAYNE HEALTH

they needed to extend their testing services into the community through mobile testing units. With support from Ford Motor Co., the state of Michigan and Hollywood director Steven Soderbergh, Wayne Health’s mobile testing platform has expanded to a fleet of five mobile health units. Some $2 million in funding for the Wayne mobile program also came from United Way, Community Fund of Southeast Michigan, the Ralph Wilson Jr. Foundation, DTE Foundation, CORE Foundation, the Sean Penn Foundation, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and many others, Levy said. Levy, Shanley and Dr. M. Roy Wilson, Wayne State’s president, also realized social determinants of health — the lack of access to such necessities as housing, healthy food and

Looking ahead, Levy and Shanley transportation — also negatively affected the health of the inner-city hope Wayne Health’s outreach effort will build trust in the community that population. “We looked beyond antibody test- will help people become and stay ing to hemoglobin A1C, blood pres- healthy. “We want to keep people from desure, HIV screening, food insecurity, veloping complications with hyperhealth care access ...” Levy said. As of March 4, more than 33,000 people “IT BECAME APPARENT THAT THERE were tested through Wayne Health’s five WERE THESE HOT SPOTS IN DETROIT.” mobile units at schools, Dr. Charles Shanley, CEO, Wayne Health churches, shelters and community centers in Detroit and across Southeast Michi- tension, diabetes and heart disease,” Levy said. “We see medical care and gan. More than 10,000 first and second social care as not separate, but intedoses of the COVID-19 vaccine also grated, because the goal of health have been administered. Two of the care ultimately is (positive) outcomes newest vehicles are equipped with and preventing disease.” cold, temperature-regulated storage for community-based distribution of Jay Greene the vaccines. Special to Crain’s Detroit Business

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WINNER | ALLIED HEALTH

Monica Waidley R.N., Michigan Medicine

onica Waidley, a registered nurse at Michigan Medicine’s Frankel Cardiovascular Center, noticed a patient who developed a severe bed pressure injury within days of admission and wondered why the injury was missed on initial evaluation. The patient was a Black male with diabetes on dialysis who had been admitted for an amputation. “He developed a really nasty sore and we honestly did not even identify it until it was the whole area was dead, necrotic,” Waidley said. “It was really significant for me. Some people come into the hospital really compromised. It can only take a couple of hours to develop the pressure injury.” Waidley, an educational nurse coordinator who has worked in the University of Michigan system for 30 years, applied for a staff nurse evidence-based practice fellowship to study the problem that can result in Black or dark-skinned patients being overlooked. She soon discovered that skin assessment for dark-skinned patients is not taught in nursing or medical school. “People are taught to look for blanchable redness as the first sign of something being wrong,” said Waidley. “When a person has a lot of melanin in their skin, you don’t see

blanching (red skin rashes that do not fade or turn white with pressure) at all. Traditional skin assessments exclude a lot of people because you don’t have a way to see that first sign.” Waidley was determined to correct what she believed was systemic racism in health care education, where certain populations are not considered in the development of treatment protocols. She wanted to find a way to detect pressure sores earlier and eliminate unnecessary suffering for these patients. Using halogen light and other enhanced skin assessments, Waidley tested the protocol on three hospital units. Over a three-month study period on about 100 patients, Waidley detected six times more stage 1 (earliest stage) pressure injuries and a reduction of stage 2, 3, 4 and unstageable (more severe) pressure injuries by one third in dark-skinned patients. “We collected data along the way and did a lot of teaching and then compared the data before and after from December to February 2019” and the same period in 2020, Waidley said. “We were able to see a significant decrease in the pressure injuries in our patients.” Pressure ulcers are injuries to the skin and underlying tissue primarily

caused by prolonged pressure on the skin. They typically affect people confined to bed or who sit for long periods of time. Because halogen lights have been hard to come by during the COVID-19 pandemic, Waidley said the skin assessment program rollout to the entire health system has been delayed until later this year. “We need about 40 halogen lights, one for each floor,” said Waidley, who has recommended the assessment for inpatients, outpatients and homebound patients. “One of the things we found when looking at the research is if you look at dark skin with fluorescent light, it casts a blue skin tone on black skin,” she said. “Sunlight is best to use for color and skin integrity changes, but there is not enough natural light in the hospital.” Waidley hopes her research will be fully adopted by Michigan Medicine and through a soon-to-be published research article. “I hope it can make a difference for patients in hospitals everywhere,” she said. “If we can prevent these injuries and give nurses the ability to find these injuries early, that is my hope.” Jay Greene Special to Crain’s Detroit Business

JUNE 7, 2021 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | 13

WINNER | ADMINISTRATOR/EXECUTIVE

Veronica Valentine McNally President, Franny Strong Foundation

MICHIGAN WING OF THE CIVIL AIR PATROL

WINNER | ADMINISTRATOR/EXECUTIVE

Rajesh Kothari Michigan Wing Commander, Civil Air Patrol

or 40 years, Rajesh Kothari, a Showplace Regional Care facility in health care consultant and Novi. The two facilities were set up managing partner of South- in case local hospitals couldn’t hanfield-based Cascade Partners LLC, dle a surge of COVID-19 patients. It was the first time a CAP incihas been involved with the Michident command team was known to gan Wing of the Civil Air Patrol. The COVID-19 pandemic gave have led such an effort, Kothari Kothari and the other 1,400 volun- said. “Like everybody else, we were teer members of the U.S. Air Force Auxiliary a special assignment playing as part of the team. Midway quite different from their tradi- through and toward the end, they tional role of search and rescue asked us to take on more and more and aerial photography missions responsibility,” he said. “Once they involving hurricanes or other nat- had made the decision they didn’t need it anymore and weren’t going ural disasters. “I joined the youth program of to take as many patients, we the Civil Air Patrol when I was 13 stepped in and were able to get it years old. ... It’s kinda cool and I dismantled in under two weeks. got hooked,” said Col. Kothari, the They kept two bays open just in Air Patrol’s Michigan Wing com- case.” Last summer, the Michigan Wing mander since 2018. “I learned so much about leadership and how to also assisted Michigan State Police be a person of integrity and to and the state health department’s leverage all the things you were emergency operation center by dislearning at home. I had a place tributing COVID-19 test kits and that I could go do it and foster that personal protective equipment to a variety of locations, including corculture.” By age 17, Kothari was in charge rectional facilities, throughout the of about 250 youth cadets in Oak- Upper Peninsula. “We’ve been transporting COVID land County. “I stayed as an adult leader and test kits, clean collection kits and helped mentor young men and then the samples back to the state women who wanted to serve,” lab in Lansing,” he said. In all, the Kothari said. “The last 20 years, Wing transported nearly 2,500 test I’ve been involved in almost every kits, 6,000 samples and more than major plane crash (in Michigan).” Last year, the Mich- “THE LINE WE USE IN CIVIL AIR igan Wing also supPATROL IS ‘SEMPER GUMBY,’ WHICH ported disaster relief in another presiden- MEANS ALWAYS FLEXIBLE. THAT’S tially declared disaster when two dams WHAT WE ARE.” failed along the Titta- — Rajesh Kothari, health care consultant and bawassee River in managing partner, Cascade Partners LLC Gladwin County. “We helped out with Hurricane 100,000 pieces of PPE in more than Harvey (2017) and took 750,000 pic- 100 air and ground sorties. Kothari said the Civil Air Patrol tures and over a million photos of the Deepwater Horizon (2010) oil had never been involved in a pandemic relief effort before. spill,” Kothari said. “That’s what a black swan event During the early days of COVID-19, the Michigan Wing pro- is, something no one could have vided an incident management predicted and expected,” he said. team to provide the logistics and “The line we use in Civil Air Patrol is resource coordination for all the ‘Semper Gumby,’ which means alsupporting agencies at the 1,000- ways flexible. That’s what we are.” bed TCF Center in Detroit and the Jay Greene 250-bed Suburban Collection Special to Crain’s Detroit Business 14 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | JUNE 7, 2021

hrough the Franny Strong Foundation, Veronica Valentine McNally educates people about the importance of vaccines. Alongside her career as a lawyer, she has become a public health advocate. McNally doesn’t want other parents to go through what she and her husband did: In 2012, they lost their 3-month-old daughter to pertussis (whooping cough). They created the Franny Strong Foundation that year to educate people about the disease, but quickly learned that the scope of the problem was larger. So they expanded the foundation’s mission to include all vaccine-preventable diseases. “Vaccination is one of the greatest achievements of modern medicine, and because of the success in preventing diseases, some people haven't seen the dangers and devastation of vaccine-preventable diseases,” McNally said. The foundation develops education strategies about vaccines. McNally founded “I Vaccinate,” a multimedia public health campaign (ivaccinate. org) that answers parents’ questions about vaccines based on credible scientific information. In 2017, Franny Strong partnered with the state of Michigan to launch the campaign statewide. This fall, in partnership with the Michigan Health and Hospital Association Foundation, Franny Strong will launch the I Vaccinate Provider Toolkit. McNally developed a new commu-

nication model called Get PAST Hesitancy to help health care providers have conversations with parents who have questions about vaccines. The toolkit allows a provider to customize materials that address a parent’s specific questions. This hesitancy is widespread. McNally noted that in 2019, the World Health Organization named vaccine hesitancy — the reluctance or refusal to vaccinate despite available vaccines — as one of the top 10 global health threats. Compounding the problem is that COVID-19’s stay-at-home orders kept many parents from vaccinating their children. “The decline is really significant. In Michigan right now, we have several counties that have low immunization rates — six below 60 percent — so we’re going to be working overtime to try and get everybody caught back up, and get adolescents vaccinated against COVID-19,” McNally said. McNally was appointed to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices in 2018. She serves as its consumer representative; the other 14 members are health care professionals. The committee advises states and the CDC director on using vaccines to control vaccine-preventable diseases, and it recommended the three COVID vaccines authorized for use. COVID has shown the public in real time “the impact of a disease, the im-

pact of the development of a vaccine, and now we’re starting to see how beneficial the vaccine has been on beginning to end the pandemic,” McNally said. She was named the CDC’s Childhood Immunization Champion for Michigan in 2018. Since February 2020, the committee has been immersed in COVID data. “I have worked really hard to represent the consumer voice on the ACIP, as we look at the COVID vaccines, and trying to bring that sort of social and community perspective. I ask questions that I think people have,” McNally said. For the COVID vaccines, she said, “I think about the product development and getting the product to the consumer, and I'm proud of doing this work, because I know how the impact can save lives.” Allison Torres Burtka Special to Crain’s Detroit Business

WINNER | PHYSICIAN

Renee Shellhaas, M.D. Pediatric Neurologist, C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital

C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital researcher is playing a lead role in trying to prevent overmedication of newborns who suffer from seizures. Those infants may be treated with phenobarbital — a potent barbiturate — either for days or for months, with the only determining factor being the hospital where they were born. It’s a disparity that led Renee Shellhaas and a team of researchers at nine medical centers across the country to conduct a study of 300 babies born during a three-year period. In a paper published May 24 in JAMA Neurology, Shellhaas and the research team concluded extra medication isn’t helpful and may have adverse effects. Shellhaas and Hannah Glass, professor of neurology, pediatrics and epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco, were co-principal investigators for the study. “Although neonatal seizures usually resolve within 72 hours, longer-term medication is often prescribed out of caution,” said Shellhaas, a professor of pediatrics at C.S. Mott in Ann Arbor. “But our findings suggest that staying on antiseizure medication after leaving the hospital doesn’t protect babies from continued seizures or prevent epi-

lepsy and it does not change developmental outcomes.” Seizures occur in one to four births per 1,000 and indicate a brain injury, Shellhaas said. While they typically resolve themselves, epilepsy or cerebral palsy can result in later life. “Having seizures is not good for the baby,” Shellhaas said. “There is some evidence having seizures can make the brain injury worse.” So, the babies are given phenobarbital. But it has a sedating effect, which can make it difficult for babies to wake up and feed, and studies have shown that toddlers who took the drug for a long period had a lower IQ, Shellhaas said. Shellhaas, who has worked at C.S. Mott since 2007, began working with the research group — called the Neonatal Seizure Registry — in 2012. The goal was to answer questions about the seizure treatment disparity. “There had to be a better answer than ‘We don’t know,’” she said. One-third of the babies involved in the study were given the drug for four days but then sent home without medicine. Two-thirds continued to take medicine at home for about four months. Researchers studied each child for two years. To gain another perspective, researchers brought in parents and patient advocate groups, Shellhaas

said. “In order to do really meaningful research, we needed to address the questions that parents thought were meaningful,” she said, adding that the group also looked at things like parent anxiety connected to stopping or continuing medication. “Each time we reached out to assess how the baby was doing, we also assessed how the parent was doing.” With the study completed, the group will move on to follow the development of the children as they reach school age, Shellhaas said. Researchers also will be looking at how study results can be implemented in medical practice. “Our hope is this will have a direct impact on care — not only on how we treat babies, but how we care for parents,” Shellhaas said. “We expect these results will change clinical practice. It’s exciting.” Doug Henze Special to Crain’s Detroit Business

BCB144436_FINAL CRAINS PRINT_F2.pdf

5/21/21

11:39 AM

Overwhelming demands. Exhausting hours. And yet, you still treat others as your own. Imagine working late so you could hold the hand of a patient so she wouldn’t die alone. Or staying at a hotel to avoid infecting your family with COVID-19. Or not being able to hug or kiss your loved ones while in quarantine. These are the kinds of personal sacriﬁces health care workers make every day. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan would like to humbly recognize all those who served on the front lines during the COVID-19 pandemic on behalf of others. You are all heroes.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network are nonprofit corporations and independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

WINNER | MEDICAL RESEARCH INNOVATION

Pediatric Care Team, C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital

hen a medical team at C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital in Ann Arbor began preparations to separate a set of conjoined twins last year, they knew they faced a monumental challenge. Not only was the surgery new to the hospital, it’s believed no one in Michigan had ever completed it successfully. And two young lives were at stake. “Most (conjoined twins) are stillborn,” said George Mychaliska, the pediatric and fetal surgeon who lead the team. “There are many who die

shortly after birth or they can’t be separated for anatomical reasons.” But with Amelia and Sarabeth Irwin, the team was optimistic. Fetal MRIs and ultrasounds taken during pregnancy determined that, although they were attached at the chest, upper abdomen and liver, the girls had separate hearts and lungs. “We were hopeful we would be able to successfully separate them,” Mychaliska said. “Every step of the way, we had challenges.” Born in June 2019, the twins originally were scheduled for a Febru-

ary ry il that R quir prep tors did min liver els o “W our ka, year man plan B nati mer ing ped add incl ric Kas

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WINNER | PHYSICIAN

Avani Sheth, M.D. Chief Medical Officer, Neighborhood Service Organization

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he populations that Neighbor- sponse efforts involved its homeless hood Service Organization recovery services operations, because homeless people are at high serves — including the homeNEED BETTER less and people with mental illness risk for COVID-19, Sheth said. They needed to figure out — were already vulnerhow to distance people able before COVID-19. more in their shelter, When the pandemic so they moved to a came into Detroit, they larger facility, and the were even more at risk, shelter team impleand it became more mented protocols to difficult for NSO to mitigate the spread. provide needed health NSO’s street teams and human services. went out to people Avani Sheth, NSO’s who were unsheltered, chief medical officer, “trying to keep them also became its safety safe, continue to proofficer and led its vide their basic needs, COVID-19 Taskforce, Avani Sheth and link them to care quickly creating protocols and guidelines to protect both immediately, because we were constaff and populations served. “We cerned that they may not seek care, had to change our work but contin- especially for COVID-19, in time,” ue to provide critical services to the Sheth said. Because the pandemic shut down communities we serve,” Sheth said. NSO’s most intensive COVID re- some people’s access to basic needs,

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ary 2020 separation, but a respiratory illness delayed the surgery until that August. Readying for separation day required “hundreds of hours” of preparations, Mychaliska said. Doctors ran resuscitation simulations, did a specialized dye test to determine where to separate the twins’ liver and even created life-size models of their organs and the chest wall. “We used the 3D models to plan our surgical strategy,” said Mychaliska, who has been a surgeon for 20 years. “The surgical team met on many occasions and did extensive planning.” Being successful meant coordinating 40 to 50 people across numerous medical disciplines, including radiology, anesthesiology, pediatric surgery and cardiology. In addition to Mychaliska, key players included Dr. Richard Ohye, a pediatric cardiac surgeon, and Dr. Steve Kasten, a pediatric plastic surgeon.

“There was not one single surgeon who had the expertise to do the surgery, so (we) had to work as a team,” Mychaliska said. “For every part of the journey, we had to work together.” The operation took 11 hours, with the first four spent on preparations that included securing the airway and placing monitoring lines, Mychaliska said. Surgeons completed the separation in two hours and then did five hours of reconstruction, including rebuilding the chest wall with a titanium plate. “It was a Herculean effort,” Mychaliska said. “We had a lot of concerns and worries. All of the steps in the operating room were carefully choreographed so there weren’t 40 people in the operating room at any one time.” A team of about 20 people worked in the room, with many more people on standby outside, he said. “It didn’t feel chaotic at any time,” he said. “(And) it couldn’t have turned out better.” Mychaliska recalled an emotional time when the babies, at last, were separated. “That was the first moment that touched everybody in the room,” he said. “There was a lot of joy in the room.” Another celebratory moment came when the babies’ skin was closed, completing the task of turning a single patient into two individuals, Mychaliska said. They then recovered for three months in the neonatal ICU. Now nearly 2 years old, the girls are doing well, Mychaliska said. “They’re now walking,” he said. “They’re moving through their milestones. They’re doing great.” It’s the outcome both doctors and parents sought. “They’re an awesome family and incredibly appreciative to have two little girls that can lead independent lives,” Mychaliska said.

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CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS

@crainsdetroit

CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS

Doug Henze Special to Crain’s Detroit Business

“NSO focused efforts on ensuring trust in the system, and rightfully that these needs, including food, so,” she said. They helped people were met, especially for those they navigate the process of getting vacserve in supportive housing,” Sheth cine appointments and transporting said. NSO also provides behavioral them to appointments — which are health services, “and we know that significant barriers, she said. “NSO has been working as an ormental health needs increased during the pandemic,” she said. ganization for decades tackling They switched their face-to-face ser- health inequities. We didn’t necesvices to telehealth, including tele- sarily call them health inequities health psychiatrist visits for people in the shelter. As a community-based “I THINK THIS PAST YEAR LAID organization, NSO didn’t BARE THOSE HEALTH INEQUITIES.” initially have access to the same resources that — Avani Sheth, M.D., chief medical officer, NSO hospitals did. Although NSO’s role is different, “oftentimes, then, but that was and still is the we’re seeing people in the commu- mission of NSO, and I think this past nity as they first present with year laid bare those health inequiCOVID-19 and figuring out how to ties,” including the impact of poversafely take care of them and get ty, racism, and structural inequities them to the right level of care,” Sheth on a person’s health, Sheth said. NSO also started offering primary said. “So early on, we had to do a lot of advocacy to make sure that we care services in June 2020 to address had the PPE” and other needed sup- people’s unmet primary care needs. plies, for both staff and the people “Despite the pandemic, we are moving forward as an organization that they serve. Sheth also led NSO’s efforts to get provides whole-person care to those people vaccinated against COVID. that need it the most,” Sheth said. “We’ve educated our staff to be able Allison Torres Burtka to deliver accurate messages to a Special to Crain’s Detroit Business population that has historical mis-

A champion for we. Congratulations to Edgar Vann, VP, Diversity and Inclusion Manager, TCF Bank, for receiving the Michigan Diversity Council’s 2021 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Racial Justice Advocacy award. Edgar is an extraordinary advocate for racial justice and equity and we thank him for being a change agent for more diverse, equitable, and inclusive environments. See what we can do together. Visit www.tcfbank.com ©2021 TCF National Bank. Member FDIC. Equal Opportunity Lender

JUNE 7, 2021 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | 17

WINNER | CORPORATE ACHIEVEMENT

Wright Lassiter III CEO, Henry Ford Health System

health screeners and clinic services representatives — received what Lassiter calls “a living wage.” It was somewhat of a surprise announcement because earlier in the year, when the COVID-19 pandemic shut down hospitals’ elective procedures and Detroit became a hotspot for hospitalizations, Henry Ford executives furloughed 2,800 workers and projected millions of dollars in operating losses. But with nearly $400 million in stimulus dollars banked, Henry Ford ended the year with a 3.5 percent operating margin and net operating income of $225.6 million, Crain’s reported. Lassiter said the reaction from employees, some of whom were making as little as $11 per hour, was positive. “I received a “WE HAD A NUMBER OF TEAM MEMBERS few written WHO WERE COMING TO WORK EVERY DAY, notes from emto say BUT WHO WERE HOMELESS FOR MULTIPLE ployees thank you and they appreciatREASONS.” ed the effort,” — Wright Lassiter III, CEO, Henry Ford Health System Lassiter said. “The most comFord had employees who were strug- mon comment I heard from several gling economically motivated him of our team members was from a vaand other senior leaders to come up let saying he would not have to conwith a plan to address the financial tinue working multiple jobs to mansituation for the system’s lowest paid age his economic circumstances.” Besides the impact on employees, workers. On Oct. 11, Henry Ford employees Lassiter said a benefit to Henry Ford in more than 100 eligible job de- was getting help on recruiting. “During COVID, we had challengscriptions — ranging from environmental services associates, nurse as- es with recruiting, particularly in the sistants, food services assistants, environmental services, housekeepeveral weeks before CEO Wright Lassiter III presented the board of six-hospital Henry Ford Health System with the plan last year to raise minimum wage for all employees to $15 per hour, he wasn’t aware some of the Detroit system’s 3,000 workers were homeless. It was a fact that surprised Lassiter and other top executives. “One of our hospital presidents sent senior leadership a survey of the number of homeless people who were working for us,” said Lassiter, adding: “We had a number of team members who were coming to work every day, but who were homeless for multiple reasons.” Despite hospitals historically providing good employee benefits, Lassiter said the discovery that Henry

ing space,” he said. “The HR team was finding that people were saying, ‘There are other industries where I could do that and not be worried about contracting COVID’ and coming in contact with people who have or potentially have this invisible virus.” Lassiter said recruiting has improved in patient care support areas. “We weren’t necessarily as concerned about stemming the tide of people leaving the organization because, frankly, we’ve generally felt that we’ve had pretty strong retention,” Lassiter said. “I will say that our industry and in our organization, we’ve seen increased turnover as a result of COVID.” Later last year, Henry Ford also gave a general wage increase of 1.5 percent to 3.5 percent to other eligible employees based on their job classification to reward employees and stem potential turnover. Costing a little more than $6 million, Lassiter said the minimum raise increase wasn’t about added expenses. It was about social justice and economic empowerment, components that also fit in with the system’s efforts to improve diversity, equity and inclusion strategies, he said. “The living wage increase for us was not a financial issue,” Lassiter said. “We talked about it before the pandemic and thought we would implement it at some point in the future.” Based on what was happening with the workforce, Lassiter said, Henry Ford moved up the timetable.

“We felt if we were extolling our desire to lean more into social justice and economic empowerment, we needed to put our money where our mouth was,” he said. “The best place for us to start was for the approxi-

mately 10 percent of our workforce who we were paying at a level that some would consider substandard.” Jay Greene Special to Crain’s Detroit Business

WINNER | MEDICAL RESEARCH INNOVATION

Gurjit Singh, M.D., and Joshua Greenberg, M.D. Cardiologists, Henry Ford Health System

Singh estimated 100,000 to 200,000 defibrillators are implanted each year. Some models send a warning beep when switched off, while others do not. Singh’s team, which also includes heart rhythm fellows Joshua Greenberg and Mahmoud Altawil, published their findings in the medical journal Heart Rhythm in January. Apple followed up by publishing a warning to consumers later that month. The problem can arise because the iPhones contain powerful magnets used to maximize “IF WE CAN SAVE ONE PATIENT, WE charging. Defibrillators and HAVE MADE AN IMPACT.” pacemakers are designed to interact with — Gurit Singh, M.D. on research that showed iPhone 12s could impact implanted magnets medical profesdefibrillators and pacemakers. sionals use as an off button, when necessary. “The defibrillation function can be That’s in case wires in the devices fail turned off and if the patient goes into — sending unwanted shocks to the a deadly rhythm, the device will not heart — or if it’s necessary to do magbe able to save a life and the patient netic resonance imaging (MRI), can die,” said Dr. Gurjit Singh, who which uses a magnetic field to prolead the team of researchers. “If we vide a picture of an area of the body. Singh’s team became curious can save one patient … we have made about how the iPhone magnets an impact.” any people wouldn’t give a second thought to sticking a cell phone inside of a shirt or jacket pocket. But a team of Henry Ford Health System cardiologists concluded that users of defibrillators — and to a lesser extent pacemakers — who do that with an Apple iPhone 12 may be putting their lives at risk. Defibrillators send electrical shocks to the heart to correct dangerous heart rhythms. Pacemakers regulate hearts that beat too slowly.

18 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | JUNE 7, 2021

Gurjit Singh, M.D., (left) and Joshua Greenberg, M.D.

would affect the medical devices after Greenberg learned about the charging function from the iPhone manual. “Our hypothesis was that maybe the magnet was not strong enough and it would not switch off the device,” Singh said.That idea was dis-

pelled when a patient with a defibrillator gave the team permission to test the theory in December 2020. “When we brought the magnet close to the patient’s chest, we saw the device would switch off for the duration of the proximity to the (phone),” Singh said.

So, they penned a letter to the medical journal, informing them of the problem. “This is the first time a phone has been shown to have these substantial interactions,” Greenberg said. Physicians have traditionally warned patients to keep phones 6 inches away from medical devices out of caution. “This recommendation was never taken as strongly,” Singh said. “Some doctors were telling patients, and some were not.” Since the warning from Singh’s team was published, the group has been bombarded with patient questions, Altawil said. Those patients need to carry iPhones in pants pockets, Singh said. “We are testing (other) phones and Apple watches to see if any of those devices bring on an interaction,” he said. So far, Samsung models tested by the group have shown no interaction, Singh said. The team is hoping to develop a study with 50 users of medical devices. Only a few have enrolled so far, because of COVID protocols, Singh said. “I’m hoping, in the next two or three months, we should be able to publish our results,” Singh said. He said Apple also is evaluating whether it needs to change its devices. Doug Henze Special to Crain’s Detroit Business

HAIL

to the front line to the discoverers to the learners to the caregivers

To all of our Health Care Heroes, including this year’s award designees:

C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital Renée Shellhaas, M.D. Monica Waidley, R.N., B.S.N., B.A. Thank you for your service to our communities. You are the

LEADERS AND BEST UofMHealth.org

WINNER | MEDICAL RESEARCH INNOVATION

SPE

Matthew Sims, M.D.

Director of Infectious Disease Research, Beaumont Health

and the ethics committee typically takes six months, Sims said. Three weeks elapsed from the March conception to April launch of Sims’ study. Small pilot groups began getting blood draws April 10, with the study full steam ahead by April 14. “All of these things were going rapid fire,” Sims said. “Normally, you would submit these things two weeks in advance (to approval groups). Things were being done in a day, because they needed to be.” Paying for it also required a special effort. “We funded this through philanthropy,” Sims said. “We went to our donors and said, ‘This is something we think we really need to do.’” And then there was the effort to run the study — something that re“THINGS WERE BEING DONE IN A DAY, quired coordinaBECAUSE THEY NEEDED TO BE.” tion of 370 people, including schedul— Matthew Sims, M.D. ers and phlebotomists. “I talked to colleagues at other inThe normal participation rate for such a voluntary study is about 10 per- stitutions and they said, ‘How did cent, Sims said. For this one, 22,000 you make this work? We want to do people signed up — about half of the something like this.’ “This worked incredibly smoothly hospital system’s 43,000 employees and has become the model for other and nonemployee doctors. “It was an incredibly popular idea studies we’ve undertaken.” The study achieved its primary among everybody who heard about it,” Sims said of the testing. “We had this goal — to relieve employee anxiety huge surge of people who wanted to do by providing useful data, Sims said. “It was amazing how much it really the study.” Getting studies approved by hospi- did seem to relieve the stress,” Sims tal leadership, a scientific review group said. “The people who had antibodhen COVID-19 reached Michigan in March 2020, just showing up for work made Beaumont Health medical workers uneasy. Was their personal protective gear enough? Had they developed antibodies? Were they carriers? “It was so new — it was a disease that didn’t exist three months before,” recalled Dr. Matthew Sims, director of infectious disease research for Beaumont Health. “We were worried we were bringing this back to our families.” To ease their fears, hospital leadership asked Sims to conduct a blooddraw study to determine who had been exposed. The study found that about 8.8 percent of participants had COVID antibodies.

ies were so happy they had antibodies (because they felt protected).” Some of the workers without antibodies were excited their protective equipment was working, he said. And, at a time when hospitals were laying off workers in response to the suspension of profitable elective surgeries, it was a way to boost morale. “It showed them that the health system was interested that they were protected,” Sims said. For the health system, the study also was a way to evaluate whether N95 masks, face shields and other protective gear were effective. “One of the things we saw was if you wore no mask you were much more likely to get infected,” Sims said. “This has definitely led to support of some of the decisions we made about wearing masks and (not getting) together in lunchrooms to unmask.” Beaumont also learned that nurses — 11 percent — and phlebotomists — 14 percent — were the workers most likely to have been infected. Surprisingly, only about 8 percent of doctors had antibodies — the same rate as employees who didn’t see patients, Sims said. “We think that’s a result of how much time is spent with patients,” he said. Beaumont still is evaluating data and publishing papers from the study. Doug Henze Special to Crain’s Detroit Business

WINNER | ALLIED HEALTH

Marcus Taylor Environmental Services Manager, Spectrum Health

hen people think about the champions in the battle against the deadly novel coronavirus, doctors, nurses and vaccine researchers likely come to mind. But Marcus Taylor and his team are health care heroes of another variety — the behind-the-scenes type. He and his crew attack COVID-19 daily, cleaning everything from hospital beds to elevator buttons in the effort to reduce human-to-human transmission of the virus. “The unsung heroes of the COVID pandemic are the people doing the cleaning,” said Taylor, environmental services manager for Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids. “We’re in every COVID room.” Taylor and his colleagues like to say that a good cleaner can prevent more disease than 100 doctors can cure. The group of about 280 employees sanitizes Butterworth, Blodgett and the Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital as well as the Meijer Heart Center. As environmental services manager, a position he’s held for six years, Taylor has overall responsibility for making sure the facilities are clean. But he throws credit to his team.

20 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | JUNE 7, 2021

“I feel like I’m accepting this recognition on behalf of all of the environmental services workers,” he said. “They really are the health care heroes.” The group is charged with cleaning every area that patients, visitors and staff frequent. That includes patient rooms, operating rooms, the emergency department, bathrooms and lobbies. The pandemic has shined a light on the work Taylor’s team does — and increased its workload. “People who didn’t give it a second thought, it’s at the top of their minds,” Taylor said of his group’s duties. “At the same time, it’s a struggle. It’s a lot more work and it can be emotionally draining for the staff. It can really take its toll.” In the past, workers were expected to clean public spaces a couple of times in 24-hour period, Taylor said. During the pandemic, the cleanings are two to three times as frequent, he said. That means using EPA-approved disinfectants to clean high-touch surfaces in lobbies, including all chair arms, railings, door handles and elevator buttons. COVID hasn’t changed the cleaning requirements much in patient areas, except that keeping rooms always ready is crucial during dis-

ease spikes that fill the hospitals. “If we’re at full census, it’s critical we get to a particular room,” Taylor said. “It’s certainly a challenge during those peak surges. We need to be very efficient at getting a room ready for the next patient.” Spectrum has tried to address the larger workload by adding 16 emergency service positions across its Grand Rapids hospitals, Taylor said. Because the demand for workers still outpaces supply, Spectrum has increased its recruiting campaigns and, eight months ago, upped wages $2 an hour. The hospital chain also is relying on retention bonuses and thank you gestures — ranging from meal passes to gift cards to thank you cards to show appreciation to workers, Taylor said. Social distancing requirements prevent traditional employee celebration gatherings. Keeping focused on the importance of the work is key in maintaining high morale, Taylor said. “Working for the hospital is incredibly rewarding,” he said. “It’s important for the community. You definitely get a sense of purpose working here.” Doug Henze Special to Crain's Detroit Business

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SPECIAL RECOGNITION | COVID-19 EXPLAINERS-IN-CHIEF

Drs. Nick Gilpin, Teena Chopra and Adnan Munkarah

or medical professionals, managing the novel coronavirus meant learning on the go and adapting protocols to treat the disease and prevent its spread as new research emerged. It also called on some physicians to take on a new role and help explain COVID-19 to an anxious and uncertain public. Day after day as the pandemic surged through their hospitals, Drs. Nick Gilpin, Teena Chopra and Adnan Munkarah stayed strong, making rounds, leading response efforts and talking with the media and the public about what was happening. Gilpin, system director of infection prevention and epidemiology of eight-hospital Beaumont Health, explained what coronavirus was and recommended precautions including masks, social distancing and frequent hand washing. He emphasized how dangerous the virus was for patients and how challenging it was for doctors, nurses and health care workers. Chopra, director of infection prevention and hospital epidemiology at six-hospital Detroit Medical Center, told us about the hospitalizations, the sickness and deaths of patients, how families and friends were separated from loved ones for public safety reasons, sometimes during their last hours. Munkarah, chief clinical officer at six-hospital Henry Ford Health System, talked about the importance of testing and the safety and effectiveness of vaccinations. He encouraged the public to get a vaccine as soon as possible for personal protection, but also as a way to slow community spread of the virus. All three did what they could to get the message out that COVID-19 was dangerous but there were things people could do to minimize risk. Sometimes their outspokenness was ahead of the political curve. However, they felt confident because they believed their opinions were based on medicine and science.

DR. NICK GILPIN

System Director of Infection Prevention and Epidemiology, Beaumont Health COVID-19 challenged health care workers more than anyone could have imagined before the pandemic began in Michigan on March 10, when the first two positive cases were discovered in Oakland and Wayne counties. The first death from COVID-19 in Michigan was reported on March 18 at a Beaumont hospital. “It’s been difficult; it was one thing after another,” said Gilpin, an infectious disease specialist. “In the beginning of the pandemic, our challenge was that we didn’t really know anything about COVID as a disease.” But Gilpin said he and others focused on caring for patients, protecting staff, preserving personal protective equipment, testing patients and now vaccinating as many as possible. “That was our true north. I slept well at night knowing we were doing those things to the best of our abilities,” Gilpin said. Early in the pandemic, Beaumont doctors and administrators huddled about how to organize hospital and staff resources.

ing our blessings and being grateful. We live here in the U.S. in a very developed country, but in India, what is happening (with record numbers of COVID-19 and deaths) is beyond words,” she said. “We are all in this together.” Chopra said hospitals and government need to be better prepared for the next pandemic. “The pandemic is not over yet. The virus has mutated and there are variants out there,” she said. “That’s why we are raising funds to create a pandemic preparedness center so we can do a better job, when it comes to testing, vaccination or dealing with the bigger problems of health care for different populations.”

DR. ADNAN MUNKARAH

Chief Clinical Officer, Henry Ford Health System

THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AND ITS FAR-REACHING CONSEQUENCES CAUSED MANY PHYSICIANS TO HAVE TO TAKE A MORE VISIBLE PUBLIC ROLE IN EXPLAINING THE PANDEMIC QUELLING MISINFORMATION FOR A FRIGHTENED AND UNCERTAIN PUBLIC. Clockwise from top: Teena Chopra, Nick Gilpin and Adnan Munkarah

“People felt that I was an effective communicator to get across this complex information in a simple, digestible fashion,” he said. Gilpin often starred in Zoom teleconferences with Michigan media to answer questions about how Beaumont was handling the pandemic. He also conducted national interviews with CNN, ABC’s Nightline, Fox News and the Washington Post. “Honestly, I’m happy to be that guy if I can help the public understand this better,” said Gilpin, who also traveled around to the health system’s eight hospital campuses to answer staff questions and offer guidance regarding best practices. Occasionally, Gilpin would offer personal thoughts about how he felt political leaders were handling the pandemic. In mid-April, when Beaumont was again facing another surge of patients, he criticized Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for not tightening up business restrictions. “First of all, I’m an infectious disease doctor, so I’m looking at all of this through the lens of someone who desperately wants to see this pandemic come to a screeching halt as quickly as possible to protect the community and people’s lives,” said Gilpin. “I also recognize that this is a very incendiary time in our political landscape and people have strong feelings and strong opinions across the board,” he said. “I don’t want to alienate anyone if I can help it. I want to speak to the science as we know it.” As the pandemic began to ease in

mid-May, Gilpin said he’s been able to focus on other things. “I’ve gotten some of my time back to be able to do some of the things that I enjoy (like) spend a lot of time outdoors,” said Gilpin. “There’s a lot more to do here than just focus on COVID. There’s patients that need to be taken care of and there’s other aspects of the infection prevention job that can’t be ignored. It’s been easier and easier to do some of those things as time has gone by.”

DR. TEENA CHOPRA

Director of Infection Prevention and Hospital Epidemiology, Detroit Medical Center At DMC, Chopra was one of the first in Michigan to call attention to the rising numbers of seniors being admitted from nursing homes. “I was able to spread the word that the mortalities are being driven by nursing homes,” said Chopra, who also is a professor of infectious disease at Wayne State University School of Medicine. “We realized that is where we should put our attention and were able to save a lot of lives,” Chopra said, adding that DMC worked with other hospitals, the Detroit Health Department and state officials to coordinate efforts. Chopra also worked with DMC’s leadership team to develop treatments, testing initiatives and infection prevention protocols to safeguard

staff and patients. It was a challenge Chopra, who has lived in Detroit for 16 years, had been prepared for her whole life. “I come from a family of physicians and professors. My grandfather, Dr. Harnam Singh, who planted the seed in my head to become a physician, was a public health doctor” who fought a cholera pandemic in India during the early 1940s, Chopra said. “I grew up listening to those stories and I always wanted to be able to serve,” she said. Early in the pandemic, Chopra’s mother, Manjit Chopra, happened to come to Detroit from India for her annual visit. “She landed March 10 and that night was the first two cases that appeared in Michigan. Since then, she has been here” helping take care of her 7-year-old daughter, Chopra said. “She’s a retired professor and she loves to volunteer. She has been helping me out a lot with my work-life balance,” Chopra said. When talking with the media, Chopra also often spoke out about the importance of COVID-19 precautions. “Very early in March, DMC began to mandate masks, even before the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). We knew this is a respiratory and a very contagious virus, and were in this for the long haul,” she said. Chopra learned several lessons from the pandemic she hopes health care leaders and people remember. “The biggest lesson for me is count-

As the number of cases and hospitalizations skyrocketed in April 2020, Munkarah was selected by Henry Ford executives to speak for the system on all matters related to COVID19. “If you asked me a year and a half ago if I would be in this seat, I would have told you never in a lifetime,” said Munkarah, adding: “As you can imagine, at times it was quite stressful, to relay messages and news that are not messages or news that any of us wish to relay. It was important to have the transparency as well as communication, both internally and externally.” Munkarah said his experience talking to the media in weekly Zoom teleconferences was natural for him. “One thing that I have enjoyed during my life is teaching,” said Munkarah, who is a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Wayne State’s medical school. “When we talk with patients it also is very important to be able to translate and share information in terms that are relatable to everyone.” Munkarah said he felt he was on firm scientific ground when he expressed opinions on matters related to the COVID-19 pandemic, including Henry Ford’s controversial hydroxychloroquine study that former President Donald Trump touted as vindicating his position that the drug was effective. “The hydroxychloroquine study unfortunately got taken out of context because of all the political turmoil that went on,” he said. “What we tried to do was give out some information to explain what we were seeing clinically (in some patients).” Munkarah said his most difficult time was explaining the hundreds of Henry Ford workers who became infected with COVID-19 during first month of the pandemic. “We learned very fast how to protect our people and what were the things to do,” he said. His overarching lesson, however, is a greater understanding that vulnerable populations are always the most affected when it comes to health emergencies. “Health equity is very important,” Munkarah said. “Their inability to quarantine, to receive care when our hospitals and emergency departments needed to be locked down, uncovered that health equity issue is bigger than we really anticipated.” Jay Greene JUNE 7, 2021 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | 21

CRAIN'S LIST | PHYSICIAN ORGANIZATIONS Ranked by number of physicians COMPANY ADDRESS PHONE; WEBSITE

TOP EXECUTIVE(S)

PHYSICIANS JAN. 2021/ 2020

FULL-TIME EMPLOYED PHYSICIANS JAN. 2021/ 2020

PART-TIME EMPLOYED PHYSICIANS JAN. 2021/ 2020

TYPE OF ORGANIZATION

HOSPITAL AFFILIATION

BEAUMONT CARE PARTNERS LLC

Ryan Catignani executive director

4,061

1,157 1,165

2,904 2,930

CIN

Beaumont Dearborn, Beaumont Farmington Hills, Beaumont Grosse Pointe, Beaumont Royal Oak, Beaumont Taylor, Beaumont Trenton, Beaumont Troy, Beaumont Wayne

MCLAREN PHYSICIAN PARTNERS

Gary Wentzloff president and CEO

2,650

1,013 913

NA NA

CIN

McLaren Health Care Corp., Karmanos Cancer Center

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN FACULTY GROUP PRACTICE

Timothy Johnson, senior associate dean for clinical affairs

2,376

2,354 2,203

NA NA

Group practice

Michigan Medicine (formerly University of Michigan Health System)

THE PHYSICIAN ALLIANCE LLC

Michael Madden president and CEO Karen Swanson chief medical officer

2,331

803 616

NA NA

IPA

Ascension Southeast Michigan, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Receiving Hospital, Beaumont Health, Henry Ford Health System, McLarenMacomb, Harper Hospital, Karmanos Cancer Institute

HENRY FORD PHYSICIAN NETWORK

Bruce Muma president and CEO

2,323

1,688 1,495

NA 0

CIN

Henry Ford Health System; others. Includes 1,688 employed physicians in the Henry Ford Medical Group and another 635 independent/community physicians in Southeast Michigan.

BEAUMONT ACCOUNTABLE CARE ORGANIZATION

Walter Lorang executive director and COO

2,040

0 0

NA 0

ACO

Beaumont hospitals in Royal Oak, Dearborn, Farmington Hills, Grosse Pointe, Taylor, Trenton, Troy and Wayne

UNITED PHYSICIANS INC.

Michael Williams, president and CEO; Diane Slon, EVP, COO

1,700

0 NA

NA NA

IPA

Beaumont Health, Beaumont Health Farmington Hills, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Crittenton Hospital and affiliates, Detroit Medical Center hospitals, Pontiac General Hospital, Garden City Hospital, Henry Ford Health System, Karmanos Cancer Center, McLaren Health Care Corp., others

UNITED OUTSTANDING PHYSICIANS LLC

Yasser Hammoud CEO and medical director

1,206

0 0

NA 0

ACO

Henry Ford Hospital-Main, Henry Ford Hospital- Wyandotte, Garden City Hospital, and hospitals designated by health plans with which UOP physicians are contracted.

MCAULEY HEALTH PARTNERS ACO LLC

Martha Walsh, regional director ACO/CIN; Melissa Bolt, executive director

1,125 1

NA 593

NA NA

ACO

St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor, St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea, St. Joseph Mercy Livingston

AFFINIA HEALTH NETWORK CIN

Shaun Raleigh, VP of population health

1,021

454 NA

NA NA

CIN

Mercy Health Saint Mary's, Mercy Health Muskegon, Mercy Health Lakeshore

MEDNET ONE HEALTH SOLUTIONS

Ewa Matuszewski CEO

969

969 980

NA NA

IPA

Ascension Providence Rochester, Henry Ford Health System, Beaumont Health, McLaren Health System, ProMedica, Ascension St. John, Detroit Medical Center, Hills and Dale

BEAUMONT MEDICAL GROUP

Daniel Frattarelli president

910

825 0

85 NA

Group practice

Beaumont Dearborn, Beaumont Farmington Hills, Beaumont Grosse Pointe, Beaumont Royal Oak, Beaumont Taylor, Beaumont Trenton, Beaumont Troy, Beaumont Wayne

GMP NETWORK

Bruce Kelly, senior director of business operations; Jacqueline Rosenblatt, executive director

862

423 268

NA NA

IPA

Henry Ford Macomb Hospital-Clinton Township

OAKLAND SOUTHFIELD PHYSICIANS PC

Jerome Frankel medical director

773

0 646

NA NA

IPA

Beaumont Health System, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Henry Ford Health System, Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital, McLaren Oakland, Sinai-Grace Hospital, St. John Providence Health System, St. Joseph Mercy Health System, St. Mary Mercy Hospital Livonia

CONSORTIUM OF INDEPENDENT PHYSICIAN ASSOCIATIONS (CIPA)

Paul MacLellan president

700

75 75

0 0

IPA

Statewide hospital affiliations

IHA HEALTH SERVICES CORP.

Mark LePage CEO

548

510 475

38 34

Group practice

Saint Joseph Mercy Health System, Michigan Medicine

OAKLAND PHYSICIANS NETWORK SERVICES

Rodger Prong, CEO; Satish Sundar, board president

518

3 3

IPA

St. Joseph Mercy Hospital Oakland, Huron Valley-Sinai DMC, Beaumont Royal Oak, McLaren, Henry Ford

NOVELLO PHYSICIANS ORGANIZATION 2

Nathan March, medical director; Marie Hooper executive director

510

0 0

NA NA

CIN

None

MICHIGAN HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS PC

Jeffrey Margolis president

477

460 459

17 15

Group practice

Beaumont Health, Beaumont Hospital Farmington Hills, Crittenton Hospital, Detroit Medical Center hospitals, Garden City Hospital, Henry Ford Hospital West Bloomfield, Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital, McLaren Macomb, McLaren Oakland, McLaren Lapeer, Pontiac General Hospital, Port Huron Hospital, St. John Providence Health System, St. Joseph Mercy Oakland, others

PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL CORP.

Asif Ishaque, president; Mike Grodus, director, Healthcare Transformation

464

46 58

NA NA

IPA

Hurley Medical Center, McLaren Flint, Genesys

OLYMPIA MEDICAL LLC

Randall Bickle president and CEO

450

15 NA

NA NA

IPA

Beaumont Farmington Hills, Garden City, St. Mary Mercy Livonia, Providence Park, St. Joseph-Ann Arbor

HURON VALLEY PHYSICIANS ASSOCIATION PC

Jeffrey Sanfield president

395

53 53

18 18

IPA

St. Joseph Mercy Health System, Ann Arbor, SJMH-Chelsea and Livingston

RELIANCE ACO

Nazmul Haque, CEO; Gene Farber, president; Munzer Samad, regional medical director

389

1 1

0 0

ACO

Ascension, Henry Ford, Beaumont, Trinity, DMC, McLaren, Garden City

MERCY HEALTH PHYSICIAN PARTNERS 3

Kristen Brown president

340 1

NA 340

NA NA

Group practice

Mercy Health Saint Mary's, Mercy Health Partners, Lakeshore Community Hospital (all West Michigan)

WAYNE HEALTH (WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY PHYSICIAN GROUP)

Charles Shanley president and CEO

306

248 253

58 45

Group practice

Ascension Michigan, Beaumont Health, Detroit Receiving Hospital, Harper University Hospital, Henry Ford Health System, Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital, Hutzel Women's Hospital, others

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

17 18

26901 Beaumont Blvd., Southfield 48033 947-522-0039; beaumontcarepartners.org 2701 Cambridge Court, Suite 200, Auburn Hills 48326 248-484-4928; mclarenpp.org 4101 Medical Science Building I, Ann Arbor 48109-0624 800-211-8181; medicine.umich.edu/medschool/patient-care 20952 12 Mile Road, Suite 130, St. Clair Shores 48081 586-498-3555; thephysicianalliance.org

1 Ford Place, Detroit 48202 313-874-1466; henryford.com/hfpn

26901 Beaumont Blvd., Southfield 48033 947-522-0037; beaumont-aco.org

30600 Telegraph Road, Suite 4000, Bingham Farms 48025 248-593-0100; updoctors.com

18800 Hubbard Drive, Suite 200, Dearborn 48126 313-240-9867; uopdocs.com

24 Frank Lloyd Wright Drive Lobby J, Ann Arbor 48105

1675 Leahy St., #200B, Muskegon 49442 231-672-3882; www.affiniahealth.com 4986 N. Adams Road, Suite D, Rochester 48306-1416 248-475-4701; mednetone.com 26901 Beaumont Blvd., Southfield 48033

43411 Garfield Road, Suite A, Clinton Township 48038 586-842-0870; gmpnetwork.org

29200 Northwestern Highway, Suite 325, Southfield 48034 248-357-4048; ospdocs.com

101 N. Main St., Ann Arbor 48104 800-594-6115; medicaladvantagegroup.com

24 Frank Lloyd Wright Drive, Lobby J2000, Ann Arbor 48105 734-747-6766; ihacares.com 2360 Orchard Lake Road, Sylvan Lake 48320 248-682-0088; opns.org

125 Park Street, Suite 300, Traverse City 49684 844-242-2473; npoinc.org

30000 Northwestern Highway, Farmington Hills 48334-3292 248-851-3300; mhpdoctor.com

2425 S. Linden Road, Suite B, Flint 48532 517-336-1400; pmcpo.com 33300 Five Mile Road, Suite 210, Livonia 48154 313-357-1215; www.olympiadocs.com 2002 Hogback Road, Suite 3, Ann Arbor 48105 734-973-0137; hvpa.com

23900 Orchard Lake Road, Suite 200, Farmington Hills 48336 248-715-5400; relianceaco.org

245 State St. SE, Grand Rapids 49503 616-685-8500; mercyhealthphysicianpartners.com

400 Mack Ave., Detroit 48201 313-448-9000; WayneHealthCares.org

4,095

2,552

2,203

2,317

2,145

1,873

1,700

935

1,125

980

925

632

646

700

509

447

510

474

468

395

375

340

298

Researched by Sonya D. Hill: shill@crain.com | This list of physician organizations encompasses physician hospital organizations and independent practice associations and is an approximate compilation of the largest such groups in Wayne,

Oakland, Macomb, Washtenaw and Livingston counties. IPA = Independent practice association. PHO = Physician hospital organization. ACO = Accountable care organization. CIN = Clinically integrated network. It is not a complete listing but the most comprehensive available. Unless otherwise noted, information was provided by the organizations. Trinity Health ACO, SE Clinical Network LLC, Affinia Health Network CIN and Trinity Health Medical Groups and Provider Services were not able to respond before publication. NA = not available. NOTES: 1. Crain's estimate. 2. Formerly Northern Physicians Organization. The name was changed in January. 3. A member of Trinity Health Michigan.

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CRAIN'S LIST | MICHIGAN HOSPITAL COMPANIES Ranked by 2020 net patient revenue COMPANY ADDRESS PHONE; WEBSITE

TOP EXECUTIVE(S)

NET PATIENT REVENUE ($000,000) 2020/2019

TOTAL REVENUE 2020/2019

UNCOMPENSATED CARE ($000,000) 2020

LICENSED-BED CAPACITY/ OCCUPANCY

NUMBER OF EMPLOYED PHYSICIANS JAN. 2021

NUMBER OF HOSPITAL/ AMBULATORY FACILITIES

MAJOR FACILITIES

BEAUMONT HEALTH

John Fox president and CEO

$3,959.1

$4,580.8 $4,908.3

$248.8

3,429 66.1%

1,275

8 154

Beaumont hospitals in Dearborn, Farmington Hills, Grosse Pointe, Royal Oak, Taylor, Trenton, Troy and Wayne

ASCENSION MICHIGAN

Kenneth Berkovitz SVP and ministry market executive

$3,702.1

$4,180.7 $4,011.3

$307.5

3,673 52.1%

1,200

16 47

Ascension St. John Hospital, Ascension River District Hospital,Ascension MacombOakland Hospital, Ascension Providence Hospital, Ascension St. Mary's Hospital, Ascension St. Joseph Hospital, Ascension Genesys Hospital and medical centers, others

HENRY FORD HEALTH SYSTEM

Wright Lassiter president and CEO

$3,665.9 1

$6,502.1 1 $6,287.3

NA NA%

1,900 1

NA NA

Henry Ford Hospital; Henry Ford Macomb Hospital; Henry Ford Wyandotte Hospital; Henry Ford Kingswood Hospital; Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital; Henry Ford Allegiance Health; Health Alliance Plan.

MICHIGAN MEDICINE 2

Marschall Runge EVP for medical affairs

$3,500.3

$4,347.7 NA

$115.7

NA 79.8%

1 40

University Hospital, Mott Children's Hospital, Women's Hospital, A. Alfred Taubman Health Care Center, UM Comprehensive Cancer Center, UM Cardiovascular Center, UM Depression Center, Kellogg Eye Center

TRINITY HEALTH MICHIGAN

Robert Casalou president and CEO Mike Slubowski president and CEO, Trinity Health

$3,100.5

NA NA

NA NA%

3,600

NA NA

St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor, St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea, St. Joseph Mercy Livingston, St. Joseph Mercy Oakland, St. Mary Mercy Livonia, Mercy Health Saint Mary's, Mercy Health Muskegon, Mercy Health Lakeshore Campus

MCLAREN HEALTH CARE

Philip Incarnati president and CEO

$2,643.1

$5,078.9 $5,125.5

NA 63.1%

497

NA NA

McLaren Bay Region, McLaren Bay Special Care, McLaren Caro, McLaren Central Michigan, McLaren Greater Lansing, McLaren Orthopedic Hospital, McLaren Lapeer Region, McLaren Clarkston, McLaren Flint, McLaren Health Plan, McLaren Macomb, McLaren Oakland, McLaren Northern Michigan, McLaren Northern Michigan Cheboygan, McLaren Port Huron, McLaren Thumb Region, Karmanos Cancer Institute, McLaren Health Management Group, McLaren Medical Group, McLaren Proton Therapy Center

SPARROW HEALTH SYSTEM

James Dover president and CEO

$1,039.0

$1,402.9 $1,340.6

$80.8

845 61.0%

366

6 89

Sparrow Hospital, Sparrow Carson Hospital, Sparrow Ionia Hospital, Sparrow Clinton Hospital, Sparrow Specialty Hospital, Sparrow Eaton Hospital

MIDMICHIGAN HEALTH

Diane Postler-Slattery president and CEO

$928.0

$1,000 $959.1

$56.6

NA 40.4%

320

NA NA

MidMichigan Medical Centers in Alpena, Clare, Gladwin, Gratiot, Midland, Mt. Pleasant and West Branch

COVENANT HEALTHCARE

Ed Bruff president and CEO

$611.7

NA NA

NA NA%

NA NA

Covenant HealthCare

METRO HEALTH - UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN HEALTH

Peter Hahn president and CEO

$488.8

$488.8 NA

NA 47.8%

162

NA NA

17 neighborhood outpatient offices as well as an urgent care and community clinic

HURLEY MEDICAL CENTER

Melany Gavulic president and CEO

$394.9

$1,339 $1,429

$19.9

443 66.9%

1 11

Hurley Medical Center

PROMEDICA MICHIGAN

Randy Oostra president and CEO, ProMedica Health System Darrin Arquette president Regional Acute Care, Michigan Dawn Buskey president Acute Care

$290.3

NA NA

$28

NA NA%

NA NA

ProMedica Coldwater Regional Hospital, ProMedica Monroe Regional Hospital, ProMedica Charles and Virginia Hickman Hospital

MEMORIAL HEALTHCARE

Brian Long president and CEO

$186.4

$219.1 $198.9

$10.2

161 34.0%

114

1 12

Memorial Hospital

LAKE HURON MEDICAL CENTER

Jose Kottor CEO

$67.0

$68 $68.2

$10

144 27.0%

1 1

Port Huron

HEALTHSOURCE SAGINAW

Michelle Trevillian president and CEO

$48.9

$49.6 $52.9

347 63.0%

1 1

Saginaw

PONTIAC GENERAL HOSPITAL 4

Sanyam Sharma chairman and CEO

$20.9

$29.5 $32.2

NA 33.0%

NA NA

Pontiac General Hospital

4 5

26901 Beaumont Blvd., Southfield 48033 248-898-5000; beaumont.org

28000 Dequindre Road, Warren 48092 866-501-3627; ascension.org/michigan

1 Ford Place, Detroit 48202 800-436-7936; henryford.com

1500 E. Medical Center Drive, Ann Arbor 48109 734-936-4000; med.umich.edu

1600 S Canton Center Road, Canton 48188 734-343-1000; trinity-health.org, .stjoeshealth.org

One McLaren Parkway, Grand Blanc 48439 810-342-1100; mclaren.org

1215 E. Michigan Ave., Lansing 48912 517-364-1000; sparrow.org

4611 Campus Ridge Drive, Midland 48640 989-839-3000; midmichigan.org

1447 N. Harrison, Saginaw 48602 989-583-0000; covenanthealthcare.com

5900 Byron Center Ave. SW, Wyoming 49519 616-252-7200; metrohealth.net

1 Hurley Plaza, Flint 48503 810-262-9000; hurleymc.com

718 N. Monroe St., Monroe 48162 ; promedica.org

826 W. King St., Owosso 48867 989-720-2273; memorialhealthcare.org

2601 Electric, Port Huron 48060 810-216-1500; mylakehuron.com

3340 Hospital Road, Saginaw 48603 989-790-7700; healthsourcesaginaw.org

461 W. Huron St., Pontiac 48341 248-857-7200; pontiacgeneral.com

$4,435.1

$3,792.2

$3,912.2

$3,501.5

$3,501.9

$2,622.0 3

$1,062.9

$928.2

$632.6

$440.6

$415.3

$185.9

$67.5

$52.5

$28.2

| This listing is an approximate compilation of the leading hospital companies based in Michigan. Net patient revenue listed is operating revenue, excluding bad debt. Total revenue is net patient revenue, investment income, non-operating or other revenue. Uncompensated care is charity care plus bad debt at costs. These are medical services for which no payment is received or expected. It is not a complete listing but the most comprehensive available. Unless otherwise noted, information was provided by the companies directly or from state and federal filings. Companies with headquarters elsewhere are listed with the address and top executive of their main Michigan office. Detroit Medical Center did not respond to requests for information before the publication date. NA = not available. NOTES: 1. Annual financial report ending in Dec. 31, 2020. 2. Formerly University of Michigan Health System. 3. From Medicare report ending in Sept. 30, 2019. 4. Also known as Oakland Physician Medical Center

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COVID-19

TCF Center on Detroit’s riverfront has seven events booked in June, when limits on indoor capacity rise to 50 percent. As of July 1, all restrictions will be lifted. | TCF CENTER

As capacity limits rise, convention business gets back to work July 1 end to indoor pandemic restrictions sets off flurry of activity for venues around state BY CHAD LIVENGOOD

When Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced midday May 20 that all coronavirus restrictions on event capacities will go away July 1, the phones started ringing at TCF Center’s sales department. By day’s end, an unnamed compa-

mbb m

ny had booked a 15,000-employee holiday party in December, said Karen Totaro, general manager of TCF Center. “Our director of sales came down the hallway doing back flips,” Totaro said. Last week marked the first step toward the return of something that re-

299 w. maple

aple ates “When the governor made the announcement (about lifting capacity limits), our phones started ringing right away,” said Karen Totaro, general manager of TCF Center in Detroit. | TCF CENTER

luxury retail space available

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sembles pre-pandemic normalcy: Capacity limits for all public-facing businesses were raised to 50 percent for the month of June. By July 1, the governor has said 15 months of capacity limits for indoor venues will be eliminated. That has already set off a flurry of business activity for convention venues around the state as trade associations and corporations have rushed to put into motion plans to hold summer meetings, while trade shows and other groups firm up plans for fall conventions, industry officials say. “When the governor made the announcement, our phones started ringing right away,” Totaro told Crain’s. “For meeting planners, they need that real number. So July 1, that was real to them, and they could start planning events.” At Detroit’s riverfront convention center, June is the jumping off point for the restart. TCF Center has seven events booked in June, including a business-to-business cannabis industry convention called CannaCon that runs June 25-26 and the summerlong Beyond Van Gogh immersive digital and interactive display of artist Vincent van Gogh’s masterpieces. “They’re expecting about 100,000 people over the three-month period,” Totaro said of the van Gogh art installation. “It’s a very good way to start.” In recent weeks, the sales team at TCF Center has started getting calls

from convention planners about booking meetings and expositions into 2022 and 2023 for industries as varied as design molding to systems engineering. Molinari “What all of this tells us is the doors really are open because they’re different types of events,” Totaro said. “It’s not like we’re just getting small athletic events or trade shows.” One drawback about the late May announcement is most major business meetings need three months of planning “runway,” said Claude Molinari, president and CEO of the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau. “If we had known three months ago that July 1 you’re in the game, there was certainly business we could have gone after,” said Molinari, who previously was general manager of TCF Center. Molinari is optimistic about 2022 after TCF Center recently booked five major conventions that will fill 40,000 hotel rooms throughout next year. The Automate Show, a trade show for the robotics, motion control and other automation technologies, had planned to hold its show in Detroit in 2021, 2023 and 2025, Molinari said. After the 2021 show got scratched due to the pandemic, planners called

and asked if they could reschedule for May 2022, Molinari said, intensifying the convention and trade show schedule next spring at TCF Center. “One of the challenges we’ll have at TCF Center is sequencing everything in in 2022,” he said. Tourism officials in northern Michigan also are reporting a quick return of business meetings, summer conventions and weddings that had been in limbo just a few weeks ago when indoor gatherings were still limited to 25 people. At Grand Traverse Resort & Spa just outside of Traverse City, Whitmer’s announcement of a date for the end of capacity limits also jammed the phones of the hotel and convention center’s sales office, resort general manager Matthew Bryant said. “They want to meet, they want to gather, they want to get back to doing what they do,” Bryant told Crain’s. “And you can’t do that on Zoom.” Grand Traverse Resort recently completed a renovation of its 88,000 square feet of meeting space. As the spring rolled along, the hotel’s management wasn’t sure what capacity limits would be in place this summer, Bryant said. Before Whitmer’s announcement, some business meetings had already begun scaling back their room blocks in the hotel and Grand Traverse Resort started selling those rooms to leisure guests, Bryant said. Almost immediately after Whitmer’s announcement, convention planners started calling to hold rooms. There are at least five weekends this summer that the hotel is sold out of rooms, Bryant said. “We are going to be pushed with room availability due to this coming back, which is a great thing,” he said. That will cause leisure travelers to seek lodging elsewhere in Traverse City, even if they go to the resort for golfing or dining on the 16th floor of the hotel tower in the Aerie Restaurant & Lounge, Bryant said. “It will support other hotels,” he said. “I think it’s going to be an outstanding summer.” Contact: clivengood@crain.com; (313) 446-1654; @ChadLivengood

SPONSORED CONTENT

CARING FOR KIDS

Advocating for the social investment in Michigan kids and their families

Advocating for the health & wellness of children and families

About this report: On this monthly radio program, the Children’s Foundation President and CEO Larry Burns talks to the community, government and business leaders about issues related to children’s health and wellness. This hour-long show typically airs at 7 p.m. the fourth Tuesday of each month on WJR 760AM. Here’s a summary of the show that aired May 25; listen to the entire episode, and archived episodes, at yourchildrensfoundation.org/caring-for-kids

Host Larry Burns, President and CEO, The Children’s Foundation

John Simon, Board Chair and Co-Founder, GreenLight Fund

Rishi Moudgil, Executive Director, GreenLight Fund Detroit

Tiffany Douglas, Market Executive for Michigan, Bank of America

Larry Burns: Tell us about the GreenLight Fund and the idea of social investments.

Larry Burns: Explain the concept of the GreenLight Fund brand.

Larry Burns: Tell us about the overall picture of Bank of America in Southeastern Michigan.

John Simon: We have been operating for about 16 years, and we are reaching about half a million children and families annually across our 10, soon-to-be 12 cities. Detroit was the fifth city that we launched, and we have moved the needle on a host of issues. The basic idea behind the GreenLight Fund is social impact investing, which is donating to nonprofits that are doing good and where the return is all social. The GreenLight Fund itself is a nonprofit, delivering a social return for the community from the donations we receive. We have to be very intentional about it, and we have to put more passion and resources into having a better country and building a better life for so many.

Rishi Moudgil: The GreenLight Fund is a model for the people of Detroit to control their destiny. It is a participatory process where we are shifting power back to residents and stakeholders in the city for improved economic mobility.

Tiffany Douglas: Bank of America is doubling down on going to work and being responsible for our clients, our colleagues, and our community. We are making investments that drive economic mobility as well as racial equality. We put another stake in the ground last June with a $1.25 billion commitment to drive those two objectives. We are aligning that work under four pillars: health, or helping to close health gaps in communities; responding to small business and its ecosystem; affordable housing; and workforce development. Bank of America has been in this market for over 100 years, so it is a community that we have been invested in and responsive to for many years.

Burns: Can you tell us about your growth? Simon: The goal is to get to 25 to 30 cities across America over the next seven to 10 years. We have proven this as a community utility that operates in harmony with United Way, the Community Foundation, food bank, school system, city government, and state government. The difference is that we are a locally-driven process, all owned and operated by Detroiters, to do what Detroit needs this year, next year, and the following year. Burns: What have you discovered that makes Detroit different from other cities? Simon: There is tremendous civic spirit and passion around Detroit, which continues to build and grow. We can do amazing things in Detroit to build a better life for everybody together. Another aspect that makes Detroit special is the amazing Black leaders throughout the nonprofit world. I think Detroit can be a leader to build a more diverse, inclusive, and better community. The automotive industry and the ecosystems around it also set Detroit apart. There is an emerging technology sector, entrepreneurial sector, and private equity sector. Detroit is building a diverse economic and educational ecosystem that will be helpful long-term. Finally, nonprofits, which the GreenLight Fund partners with, are doing incredible work. We have loved partnering with the city and the school system. We have found these major institutions in the city to be very functional partners. I fell in love with Detroit when we were building the GreenLight Fund Detroit, and that love continues to this day. Burns: Do you see a trend of integrating philanthropy with socially responsible capitalism? Simon: I think it is a trend across the country. We are seeing businesses with a real sense of responsibility to the community and the world. We are going to be paying attention to that and how we invest, how we hire, and how we operate. It is a positive trend because it pulls everybody together. Customers and investors gravitate to companies that are doing good.

Burns: Tell us about some of your social investments. Moudgil: In nearly four years, we have distributed close to $2 million in unrestricted grants to organizations. They have, in turn, leveraged another $8 million in revenue to support and grow these new programs in our community. We hire locally to staff our programs, and we continue to build the social sector of Detroit. For example, the Center for Employment Opportunities provides immediate and comprehensive employment services for residents returning home from incarceration. CEO has a multi-step model to operate work crews across the region. Through supervisors, job feedback, daily pay, and much more, people are supported as they return to work. CEO then ensures they find long-term employment in the pathway of their choice, and stays with them for up to a year. This powerful program significantly reduces recidivism rates. Right now, CEO is working on the beautification of the Fitzgerald neighborhood in partnership with the city and the Detroit Employment Solutions Corporation. Over the last year, they have distributed direct stimulus to over 700 Detroiters. CEO also led a coalition to overturn a state ban on food assistance access for individuals with multiple felony convictions. The second program is a new teacher center to increase teacher retention and performance. Our vision is that every new teacher in the Detroit Public Schools Community District will be supported for the first two years by a veteran teacher mentor. Finally, we launched our third program during the pandemic called Springboard Collaborative, which works between teachers, students, and parents or caregivers to set reading goals and create incentives for at-home learning.

Burns: Bank of America was a founding investor that brought the GreenLight Fund to Detroit. Why was it important to have this program? Douglas: We are proud to be founding partners and funders for this initiative because it is innovative, responsive, flexible, and it comes with a coalition of those who are willing to discover, scout, select and invest in opportunities that change outcomes for Detroiters. We have made three pivotal investments for how Detroiters can work, how they are supported in school, and how parents or caregivers are getting connected to that education model. Burns: How important was it for the GreenLight Fund Detroit to be Detroit-centric? Douglas: It is critical. We have our own challenges, connections, and priorities. It must come from Detroiters, for Detroiters, by Detroiters, and with Detroiters. The GreenLight Fund does not pretend to know all of the needs and have a cookie-cutter response method, but it takes the time to discover and select the kind of initiatives that will improve conditions in Detroit. We love it because at Bank of America, we do the same thing.

Burns: Is there one thing that you’re most proud of?

Burns: What does the selection process involve?

Moudgil: We are making sure Detroiters are leading at every stage. We are very deliberate about inclusion and representation.

Douglas: It is a coalition of the willing — people who are interested in moving the needle on metrics for Detroiters have come to be a part of it. Think of people with philanthropy, corporate, community, education, and civic backgrounds. These diverse perspectives come together for the discovery process to scout opportunities and then make the selection. It is not just a small group of people deciding the one thing we need. It is an election process that determines how an organization could come in and make a difference. Much like the selection process for the GreenLight Fund, Bank of America has a process for our neighborhood builders — we go beyond our corporate walls and talk with community leaders. We have to invest better, smarter, and more flexibly. That requires a group of diverse voices from diverse backgrounds to help make some of these decisions for our communities.

Burns: You’re getting ready for the GreenLight Fund Detroit, the second fund. What’s the timeframe? Is there an overall goal of that fund? And how can others get involved? Moudgil: Our model is to raise several million dollars, and then spend that over the next few years by running our community-centered process. This year, we are talking to our founding supporters, and also inviting new investors. We hope to raise $4 million to $5 million. If you are interested in getting involved, my contact information is on our website at greenlightfund.org.

JUNE 7, 2021 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | 25

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

Advertising Section To place your listing, visit www.crainsdetroit.com/people-on-the-move or, for more information, contact Debora Stein at 917.226.5470 / dstein@crain.com

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Waterford Bank

David Krysak, RA, has joined Progressive AE’s leadership team as the director of practice development. In this role, he will spearhead the organization’s national expansion across its ten market sectors. Progressive AE is a full-service design firm headquartered in Grand Rapids, MI. David is a licensed architect and holds an MBA from Rutgers University as well as a Master of Architecture from Lawrence Technological University.

Brieden Consulting Group, a leading employee benefits management and culture consulting firm, has announced the addition of Adam Williams as their Business Development Coordinator. Adam brings exceptional industry experience and will be responsible for managing our new and existing client relationships, and formulating strategic plans for them, to include positively impacting & improving their culture with a focus on wellness education, uniquely packaged benefits, and corporate profitability.

Waterford Bank, N.A. is pleased to announce the addition of Jeff Bass, SVP, Commercial Lending to our Troy Office. Jeff brings 27 years of banking experience to Waterford, with a background that includes: commercial and industrial lending, investment real estate finance, SBA and construction development lending, as well as the formation and management of a national self-storage banking team. Learn more about the Bank at www.waterfordbankna.com.

AUTOMOTIVE

HEALTHCARE / PROVIDER

Baraja

Health Alliance Plan (HAP)

Jaffe Raitt Heuer & Weiss, P.C. has added two partners to its Firm’s emerging & growth business practice group. Bruce Kahn S. Kahn has advised for-profit and nonprofit business enterprises on virtually all aspects of the business lifecycle including acquisition, ownership, operation Donahue and sale, and others. Marguerite M. Donahue has extensive experience in securities law and mergers and acquisitions, helping guide clients through asset sales, exchange offers, reorganizations and more. At Jaffe, the attorneys will be part of a team of experts that assists start-up companies as they grow their businesses, providing strategic legal support and counsel to successfully navigate the evolving entrepreneurial landscape.

HAP has named Kristy Jim Kane joins Baraja Strain director of with more than 20 Medicare product and years of engineering Medicare sales experience at operations, responsible DaimlerChrysler, for overseeing HAP’s Magna and several Kane Medicare product expansion, automotive startups. including a dual special needs Drawing from his program (DSNP) expansion in previous experience Southeast Michigan. Strain has working with more than 20 years of industry automotive-scale experience, including the manufacturing and LiDAR technologies Ce ebrate as your Success successful implementation of the Magna’s Globalnts Vice Eichenberg w th Repr & Recogn t on Centers for Medicare and President of Engineering, Kane Products Medicaid’s Medicare-Medicaid Plan in four states. Prior to will be responsible for integrating joining HAP, she led the Baraja’s Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR Medicare program for Shared into the next generation of Health in Nashville. autonomous cars. 0 Paul Eichenberg44joins Baraja 0 afterT spending more than a decade working at Magna as Vice President of Corporate Development and Strategy. At Baraja, Eichenberg will use his industry knowledge and commercial acumen to expand LAW the company’s partner network and supplier base, and help scale Witt & Howard, PLLC. its commercial sales in the near Witt & Howard, PLLC., future. has announced the promotion of Nicholas Goldsworthy to the position of partner Why not? with the firm. Mr. Goldsworthy provides a variety Ce eb a e you Success w h Rep n s & Recogn on of business-related legal services P oduc s to closely held businesses, Laura P car e o PROMOTE. start-ups, and other Rep n s Sa es Manage Why not? entrepreneurial clients. These Phone (732) 723 0569 Celebrate your Success legal services include business Fax (888) 299 2205 with Reprints & Recognition structuring, ongoing operations, Ema p ca Products! e o@c a n com financing, copyright and trademark protection, and exit T planning. He is licensed to practice law in Michigan, Illinois, and Wisconsin.

NEW HIRE? PROMOTION? BOARD APPOINTMENT?

PROMOTE. Why not?

PROMOTE.

September 2, 2019 | crainsdetroit.com

40 40

Dandridge Floyd, 37

UNDER

Assistant Superintendent of Human Relations and Labor Relations, Oakland Schools

October 30, 2017 | crainsdetroit.com

PHOTOGRAPH BY JACOB LEWKOW FOR CRAIN’S

UBS to open downtown Detroit office

By Annalise Frank

October 30, 2017 | crainsdetroit.com

• UBS plans to open wealth management office in Detroit in mid-2018 • Office to include 6,000-squarefoot space30,nonprofits and civic October 2017 | crainsdetroit.com

UBS to open downtown Detroit office

By Annalise Frank

groups • UBS plans to open wealthcan use free of charge • Bedrock-owned buildings

office in Detroit “I’m impacting lives now. management I know undergoing renovations in mid-2018 6,000-squarethe effect food insecurity• Office had onto includeUBS plans to open an office in downfoot space nonprofits and civic town Detroit in mid-2018, the company Annalise Frank growing groups meByand my peers up, andcan useannounced free of charge Monday. • Bedrock-ownedUBS buildings Group AG’s U.S. and Canadian UBSan plans to open wealth this•was opportunity toundergoing make a renovations wealth management business, New Jermanagement office in Detroit sey-based Wealth Management change I wish an adult UBScould plans to open an office UBS in downin that mid-2018 Americas, to lease 13,000 square town Detroit in mid-2018, theplans company • Office to include 6,000-squarefeet on the connected sixth floors of have made for me.” announced Monday. foot space nonprofits and civic

UBS to open downtown Detroit office

Bedrock LLC

hroughout Dandridge Floyd’s careers — whether as a social worker, attorney or assistant superintendent of Oakland Schools — making change has always been a center point. When United Way pitched a framework to Oakland Schools for a countywide breakfast program to address poor nutrition as a way to improve academic achievement, Floyd — who experienced food insecurity growing up — knew firsthand the powerful impact it could have. To secure the needed funds, Floyd led a team that earned support from all 28 local districts to finance the program — despite the fact that a majority of them would see no benefit. “The local districts were phenomenal,” Floyd said. “The biggest surprise was how quickly it happened. Education is a democratic system and democracy can be very slow, but this happened in six to seven months. That showed how committed people were to making sure the students of Oakland County have everything they need to be successful.” In a county where over 7,000 children suffer from hunger, and only two in five eligible students access a school breakfast, Floyd said a common misperception is that “Oakland County is rich.” “That makes this program all the more important, because if that is the bias or the thought process people have about Oakland County, then these kids would have never gotten help.” In a groundbreaking public/nonprofit partnership between the Oakland County Board of Commissioners, Oakland Schools and United Way, Oakland County is Better with Breakfast was born. “I’m impacting lives now,” Floyd said. “I know the effect food insecurity had on me and my peers growing up, and this was an opportunity to make a change that I wish an adult could have made for me.” — Laura Cassar

UBS will lease 13,000 feet from Bedrock LLC starting around mid-2018 in two buildings: the Grinnell Building (center left) at 1515 Woodward Ave. and the Sanders Building (center right) at 1529 Woodward Ave.

Bedrock LLC

buildings at 1515 WoodGroup AG’sneighboring U.S. and Canadian groups can use free UBS of charge ward Ave. and Fourteen metro Detroit employees don’t really have adequate resources wealth management business, New 1529 Jer- Woodward Ave. • Bedrock-owned buildings The twoManagement buildings built around 1900 are will move to the downtown office to or adequate office space to host dosey-based UBS Wealth undergoing renovations by Detroit-based will lease LLC 13,000 feet from Bedrock LLC starting around mid-2018 buildings: Grin- meetings or things nor events the or board start, but the office has the capacity toin two Americas, plans toowned lease 13,000 square UBSBedrock nell Building (center at 1515 Woodward andnew the Sanders Buildingalong (centerthose right) at 1529 Bush said. and are undergoing said left) lines,” hold another six toAve. eight staff memon inthe connected sixth floors of renovations, Reprinted with permission from Crain’s Detroit Business. © 2019 Crain Communications Inc. All RightsUBS reserved. plans to open anfeet office downAve. for bers, Bush said. It will act as an extension John Bush, 60, WoodMichiganWoodward market head UBS’s investment in the new ofneighboring buildings at 1515 Further duplication without permission is prohibited. Visit www.crainsdetroit.com. #CD1134 town Detroit in mid-2018, the company UBS Wealth ManagementFourteen Americas.metro of fice will resources be “significant,” he said, as its the other wealth management offices. don’t really have adequate Detroit employees announced Monday. ward Ave. and 1529 Woodward Ave. “The real impetus open atonew The twoCanadian buildings built around 1900 arefor us “uniqueness Bush is based theadequate Birmingham office space to hostcomes do- at a price.” He said willto move the downtown office out to ofor UBS Group AG’s U.S. and office inBedrock Detroit is to support what’s owned by Detroit-based LLC he could or not yet provide an estimate but travels to to the will meetings norothers eventsand or board things start, but the goofficeoffice, has the capacity wealth management business, New Jering renovations, on in the city, ” saidhold Bush, a Detroit and are undergoing said on the be spending in thealong Detroit branch. those lines,” Bush said.cost of the build-out, as some another six to eight new stafftime memsey-based UBS Wealth Management nativemarket who grew City. “We John Bush, 60, Michigan headup forin Garden have yet The location have a less UBS’s investment in the new of- to be finalized. said. will act asDetroit an extension fromBush Bedrock LLCItstarting around mid-2018 in twowill buildings: the Grin- contracts Americas, plans to lease 13,000 square UBS will lease 13,000 feetbers, UBS Wealth Management Americas. really felt like we wantedofto have a physfice will be “significant,” hecompany said, as its the other wealth management offices. The plans to start its buildtraditional, more “urban” feelright) than 1515 Woodward Ave. and the Sanders Building (center atthe 1529 feet on the connected sixth floors of nell Building (center left) at “The real impetus for us to open adowntown new ical presence to reinforce “uniqueness comes at saidnext year, depending Bush is based outothers, of the he Birmingham outa price.” processHe early said. New York-based architecneighboring buildings at 1515 Wood- Woodward Ave. office in Detroit is our to support go-particular vision what’s for this areatravels and toture he will could not yet an estimate office, but the firm others and will Cale on when renovations on the buildings Verderame design the provide ward Ave. and 1529 ing Woodward don’t really have adequate resources Fourteen metro Detroit employees on in theAve. city,”tosaid Bush, a Detroit reinforce our on Barton the cost of the build-out, as some be spending time inspace; the Detroit branch. are complete. Southfield-based Malow The two buildings builtnative around 1900 areup in adequate office space to have host dowill moveCity. to tothe officelocation to or will who grew Garden “Wedowntown commitment contracts finalized. The Detroit have aon less based in Switzerland, employs Co. has signed as general contractor.yet to beUBS, owned by Detroit-based Bedrock nor events or board or things start, thea physoffice has the capacity really felt likeLLC we wanted tobut The company plans to startacross its buildtraditional, moreto“urban” than the outmeetings the city. ” have 60,000 54 countries. About 34 UBS feel plans to rent about half of the and are undergoing renovations, along those lines,” Bush said. early next year, depending hold six to eight new he staff memical presencesaid downtown toWealth reinforce others, said. New office York-based architecUBS another — 6,000 square out feetprocess — at no cost percent of them work in the AmeriJohn Bush, 60, Michiganour market head UBS’s investment the renovations new of- on the buildings bers, said. It will act an extension vision for for thisMparticular oninorganizations, when tureasfirm VerderametoCale will design theother a n aBush g e marea e n tand cas, according to a news release. UBS nonprofits and UBS Wealth Management will beMalow “significant,” he said, as its of the other also wealth management offices. ficeBarton to Americas. reinforce our Americas are be complete. space; Southfield-based Bush said. The space will called UBS Wealth Management Americas em“The real impetus for commitment us to open a new “uniqueness comes at a price.” He said is based thehas Birmingham to has Bush based signed on as Woodward general contractor. metro De- out ofCo. ploys 280employs in Michigan, 225 of whom Gallery. Its UBS, design and in artSwitzerland, office in Detroit is to support what’s go- office, but travels to theUBS heabout couldhalf not an estimate others and the city. ” 60,000 across 54 countries. 34 Detroit. plans towill rent will out of yet the provide troit offices in are basedAbout in metro aim to showcase Detroit’s history ing on in the city,” said Bush, on the cost the build-out, asthem somework in the Amerispending Detroit branch. UBS a Detroit Wealth B be percent office — 6,000 square at noofcost irm i n g h a time m , in the The wealth management business andfeet a— hub-and-spoke layout ofwill renative who grew up in Garden contracts have yet tocas, be finalized. M a n a gCity. e m“We e n t Troy, The Detroit locationtowill have a and less other according to a news release. UBS nonprofits organizations, Farmington recorded operating income of $2.13 flect the city’s road system. really felt like we wanted to have a physAmericas also Hills, The plans to startManagement its buildtraditional, more “urban” Wealth Americas em- quarter of 2017 — a Bushfeel said.than The the space will becompany called Plymouth in the third “Some of theUBS organizations that op- billion ical presence downtown reinforce has tometro De- others, he said. New York-based outdesign process early year,280 depending architecploys in Michigan, 225 of whom Woodward Gallery. Its and art next John Bush erate and Dearborn. and provide services in the city 7 percent increase over last year. our vision for this particular area and troit offices in ture firm Verderame Cale when renovations the buildings the onDetroit’s in metro Detroit. willwill aimdesign to showcase history areonbased to reinforce our B i r m i n g h a m , space; Southfield-based complete. Malow arelayout The wealth management business andBarton a hub-and-spoke will reReprinted with permission from Crain’s Detroit Business. © 2019 Crain Communications Inc. All Rights reserved. commitment to Troy, Farmington Co. has signed on as general UBS, basedis prohibited. in Switzerland, employs income recorded operating contractor. flectFurther the city’s road without system. duplication permission Visit www.crainsdetroit.com. #CD936of $2.13 Hills, Plymouth the city.” billion in About the third “Somehalf of the organizations that op60,000 across 54 countries. 34quarter of 2017 — a UBS plans to rent out about of the John Bush and Dearborn. UBS Wealth 7 percent and provide city work percentinofthe them in theincrease Ameri-over last year. office — 6,000 squareerate feet — at no cost services Management to nonprofits and other organizations, cas, according to a news release. UBS Reprinted with permission from Crain’s Crain Communications Inc. All Rights reserved. Americas also Wealth Management Americas emBush said. The space will be Detroit calledBusiness. UBS © 2019 Further duplication without permission is prohibited. Visit www.crainsdetroit.com. #CD936 has metro DeWoodward Gallery. Its design and art ploys 280 in Michigan, 225 of whom troit offices in will aim to showcase Detroit’s history are based in metro Detroit. Birmingham, The wealth management business and a hub-and-spoke layout will reCRAINSDETROIT.COM I MARCH 9, 2020 I Troy, Farmington recorded operating income of $2.13 flect the city’s road system. Hills, Plymouth THE CONVERSATION “Some of the organizations that op- billion in the third quarter of 2017 — a John Bush erate and provide services in the city 7 percent increase over last year. and Dearborn.

Albert Berriz talks workforce housing, Ann Arbor and Cuba

Reprinted with permission from Crain’s Detroit Business. © 2019 Crain Communications Inc. All Rights reserved. | BY KIRK PINHO Further duplication without permission is prohibited. Visit www.crainsdetroit.com. #CD936

LAW

Crain’s People on the Move showcases industry achievers and their companies to the Detroit business community. Contact: Debora Stein at dstein@crain.com

NONPROFIT

The Community House The Community House of Birmingham announces the appointment of Jordan Ingram to the Investment Committee of The Community House Foundation Board of Directors. Ingram, a Vice President and Banker at the office of J.P. Morgan Private Bank in Birmingham, will help supervise the growth and investment of the organization’s endowment fund and investment portfolios. Founded in 1923, The Community House is a non-profit destination for personal, professional, recreational and philanthropic pursuits.

Jaffe Raitt Heuer & Weiss, P.C. Jaffe Raitt Heuer & Weiss, P.C. has added two experienced attorneys to the Firm’s team of legal professionals. Joseph Lash Lash joins as a partner in the real estate and corporate law practice groups. For over 25 years, Joseph has represented a wide variety of clients, including entrepreneurs, Sims landlords, tenants, developers, manufacturers, and professionals in all aspects of their businesses. David Sims joins the Firm as a partner in the litigation & dispute resolution practice group. David has over 30 years of experience advising clients on commercial litigation and real estate matters, acting as a third-party counselor in complex negotiations and dealings.

PUBLIC RELATIONS

Facebook Truscott Rossman congratulates Kelsi Horn on her new position as Executive Communications Associate Manager for Facebook. Since 2019, Kelsi served as an account executive and PR strategist in Truscott Rossman’s Detroit headquarters working with a diverse range of clients, including Facebook. Now she’ll bring her talents to the social media giant managing the executive profile of COO Sheryl Sandberg. For opportunities at Truscott Rossman, visit www.truscottrossman.com.

LIVENGOOD

F om Page 8

can ge care nex mon h us because he au o nsurance aw s affords peop e m ess benefi s doesn mean hey be ab e o use hem he spec a zed care prov ders a go under Runes ad sa d “ ken o you can have your Second Amendmen you us can have ammun on” Runes ad sa d “ don h nk s a respons b e Repub can po cy o change a con rac such ha he prov s ons no onger app y as or g na y unders ood” Bu as he c ock cks c oser o he u y 2 mp emen a on o he 55 percen cap on ra es cer a n Med ca d prov ders charged an 1 2019 or serv ces no covered by Med care he au hors o he aw such as House Speaker ason Wen wor h and Sena e nsurance Comm ee Cha r Lana The s have shown no s gn o recons der ng ongough re orms The ee schedu e n he aw s ed o manda ory cu s n nsurance prem ums or us he Persona n ury Pro econ por on o a dr ver s nsurance b The s R-Br gh on a so sa d med ca prov ders need o nego a e ra es above he 55 percen cap w h au o nsurers “There s no h ng ha s ever proh bed prov ders rom con rac ng n h s space bu o en hey haven because hey were ge ng pa d s gn fican y more no o” The s sa d n an n erv ew Hope Ne work a no - or-profi bra n n ury rehab a on prov der based n Grand Rap ds has r ed or mon hs o engage w h au o nsurance carr ers o nego a e be er ra es han he aw a ows “We were rebuffed or unanswered by a o hem” sa d Margare Kroese Hope Ne work s execu ve v ce pres den who runs Hope Ne work Neuro Rehab a on a o n ven ure w h Spec rum Hea h “They are no ee ng any urgency” Sh rkey sa d he wan s o see how he au o nsurance ndus ry responds o he “concerns” o med ca prov ders who say hey can make he economcs work o charg ng 45 percen ess or an hour y n-home nurse a de “ h nk we need o e he aw p ay ou o s u n en ” Sh rkey sa d “ unders and a o he angs r gh now And r gh now wan o see how he nsurance ndus ry s respond ng o h s change as much as he prov der ndusry does” “ doesn mean here s no go ng o be d srup on” Sh rkey added “Tha aw by defin on was go ng o be d srup ve” Brooks Pa erson whose Augus 2012 au o n ur es were covered by worker s compensa on nsurance s nce he was on he ob a he me o h s acc den spen h s fina years o e de end ng he noau nsurance aw Say wha you wan abou Pa erson bu he shame ess y de ended he noau aw as good or he econom c prosper y o Oak and Coun y Pa erson s car acc den made h m even more en renched on he ssue a er h s dr ver ames Cram was parayzed rom he neck down Less han hree mon hs be ore Pa erson s Augus 2019 dea h Sh rkey and hen-Speaker Lee Cha fie d — w h he he p o De ro Mayor M ke Duggan and Rocke Compan es Cha rman Dan G ber — s rung oge her a b par san coa on o eg s a ors o overcome he Oak and Coun y execuve s po ca gr p on h s ssue Now hey re a abou o find ou whe her Brooks was r gh a a ong

MCKINLEY INC.: Ann Arbor-based real estate company McKinley Inc. saw the writing on the wall for its retail portfolio a few years ago and cut bait, turning its focus primarily to its large crop of tens of thousands of workforce housing units across the country. One of the people at the helm of that decision was Albert Berriz, CEO and managing member, who came to America as a young boy fleeing Cuba and now steers a large company with a portfolio valued at more than $4 billion. `Crain’s Detroit Business: Can you talk a little bit about how the McKinley portfolio began and where it’s at today? Berriz: McKinley started in 1968 in Ann Arbor, and it was founded by (former U.S.) Ambassador Ron Weiser. It started in the student housing business and eventually transitioned into more traditional multifamily housing, and in addition to that, office and retail, as well. Today, we’re primarily a workforce housing multifamily operator. We have essentially disposed of our retail and office assets in an effort to really focus on multifamily and also focus on an asset class that I think is more in line with our current goal, which is to have a generational multifamily real estate enterprise and a pool of assets that really are long term in nature. ` Explain workforce housing versus workf affordable housing. We’re not in luxury housing. Our residents are working. They’re going to wake up tomorrow morning and go to work. Our average rents are, for example, in Washtenaw County, about $1,100 to $1,200 or in Orange County, or Seminole County, Florida, $1,400 or $1,500. So these are affordable rents. And the difference between us and affordable housing is our buildings are not subsidized. They’re all market rate, and they’re all privately owned. The owners are not receiving any form of subsidy, nor are the residents. However, if you wanted to sort of assess residents and low-income housing tax credit deals compared to ours, they’re probably not too dissimilar, the median incomes. The McKinley residents in, let’s say, Washtenaw County, when you look at the numbers are probably not going to be too much different than what you would see in a traditional LIHTC deal. But again, our buildings, the primary differences, our buildings are market rate and they’re not subsidized any way.

`II don’ don’t think it’s overblown to use the word “crisis” for Ann Arbor’s affordafford able housing situation. Give us your perspective on how the city should go about addressing it. I think it’s a supply issue. The reality is that Ann Arbor has not really welcomed solutions from the private sector and has only sought solutions from the public housing side or the community nonprofit side. And both of those groups, while I think they’re very well intentioned, don’t have the capital and the expertise to resolve the problem at the scale it’s needed. To put it in perspective, you know, the Washtenaw County study that came out had a need of about 3,000 units. And if you look at the cost per unit today, and let’s say $250,000 or $300,000 per unit to build a brand new unit today, you know, it’s an $800 million to a $1 billion problem, so I don’t think that’s a problem that gets resolved on the public side or on the community nonprofit side. You know, they have to go to places to seek capital and there just isn’t enough capital, nor do they have enough resources or expertise to resolve the problems. So the city I think, by and large, has attempted to do this in those ways because they really haven’t welcomed the private side. And there is a lot of expertise and there’s a lot of capital that could do this, from the private side perspective. It just hasn’t been the way that Ann Arbor operates, so you see what has happened in Ann Arbor year over year, decade over decade is there’s a lot of conversations about affordable housing, but there’s no solutions. `You were talking a little bit earlier about how McKinley got out of retail and office. What led to that decision and how has that reflected or shaped your business strategy? It was a risk profile that we were just not comfortable with. We are a generational business and so we look at our assets in

a way that we never expect to sell them. We expect to invest in them so they last for long term, and we just couldn’t see that on retail. We saw a significant degradation of our rent rolls. We had buildings that were, let’s say, 70 percent to 80 percent investment-grade credit tenant composition and then we saw that we saw that quickly degrade. We just didn’t see a place where we could really have an asset class retail that would last for the long run. And then office in many ways, the same way. The way people are shopping and the way people are occupying offices today, the risk profile is very different than it was, let’s say, when we were making those investments 20 and 30 years ago, so for us, it was the right move. It’s paid off because, had we held many of the assets today, they would be significantly compromised. I think they would be worth a lot less. We started those sales about six years ago, and we sold a lot of that early on, so we sold them still at a time they were being valued significantly more than they would be worth today, in our opinion. And we sold some big buildings. I mean, these weren’t small buildings. We sold a 1 millionsquare-foot shopping center, for example, in Norfolk, Va., which is one of the largest power centers in the state of Virginia. So these weren’t small assets. So they were important for us to move them out at the right time, and for people that thought that was there was a good upside for them, so we actually sold them at good prices, and certainly we couldn’t have sold them at those prices today.

trajectory was to where you are today in terms of the head of McKinley. I left (Cuba) compliments of Fidel Castro in early 1959 because of the Cuban Revolution. We had to flee. It was survival to leave the country at the time and my parents relocated to Miami. We were fortunate for that. We’re fortunate to have left alive, fortunate to have resettled in what is without question the greatest country on the planet. I was not born here. I was born in Havana and I emigrated as a Cuban refugee just before I was 4 years old with my parents. `What consumes your day outside of the office? My wife and I walk. We like to boat, so those are the two things. In our summers we live at Saugatuck, and it’s a great place to live. We’d live there year-round, but it’s a little too cold in the winter.

`Can you give thumbnail sketch of coming here and what your

Con ac c vengood@cra n com (313) 446 1654 @ChadL vengood

Albert Berriz, CEO and managing member, McKinley Inc.

26 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | JUNE 7, 2021 Lau a P ca e o Laura Picariello Reprints Sales Manager R n S M n Phone: (732) 723-0569 Ph n 732 723 0569 Fax (888) 299-2205 888 299 2205 Email: lpicariello@crain.com

great but where is the humanitarian aspect in it? Where is the equitable aspect in it?” Heard asked. “Are they going to an LGBT nonprofit to fill in the gaps where government policy stops? Are you going to donate this to an LGBT homeless shelter?” Retailers can also direct dollars back to the community by using LGBTQ-owned companies as suppliers, Heard said. Activists and critics of corporate pride, like those in a 2019 Washington Post opinion piece “Pride for Sale,” also point to other considerations like how the corporations treat their LGBTQ employees. While some companies make substantial contributions, Richter pointed out, the entrepreneur also sees single-proprietor businesses giving back. They called it frustrating seeing CRAIN ’S DETROIT BUSINESS praise for a large company giving what Richter considers a smaller ratio of their earnings compared with how that company is benefiting. Richter’s shop has grown through

June 7, 2021

word of mouth, events and social media. They sell online through a website and Etsy, and at fairs. They’re best-known for their hats, including snapbacks with colorful brims displaying various identities: blue, pink and white for transgender pride, for example. Richter doesn’t believe shopping at a big-box store is “automatically evil.” They’ve heard from youth whose parents won’t let them shop online, for example, or they don’t have a credit card, or the mall is more convenient. “It’s very complicated and I don’t think (corporations selling pride merchandise) can or should be stopped … but I think just being aware and consuming from small queer creators when and where we can,” they said. “If possible, holding the big corporations responsible and pushing them a little bit.” Contact: afrank@crain.com; (313) 446-0416; @annalise_frank

Advertising Section

Dearborn resident Frankie Nuñez designs and sells LGBTQ-themed stickers, keychains and other items through his shop and at craft fairs and other events.| CHUNKYSEQUINS

LGBTQ

From Page 3

Where do the dollars go? So, who corners that market? It’s big: LGBTQ Americans’ buying power neared $1 trillion as of 2016, according to LGBT Capital. That is the most recent data readily available. Small enterprises aren’t uncommon: The National LGBT Chamber of Commerce’s 2016 America’s LGBT Economy report, its latest, found that of certified LGBT-owned businesses, more than 40 percent were either sole-proprietor businesses or single-member LLCs. But reporting statistics about LGBTQ-owned businesses and employment is challenging because data collectors like the U.S. Census Bureau gather little information on sexual orientation and gender identity issues. Milford resident Jasper Richter has been making LGBTQ merchandise full time for more than three years, since they graduated college. They first started while “wrangling with my own identity as a queer person” in their late teens, seeking pride apparel that met their needs at the time as nonbinary and pansexual and finding little. “So I said screw it, I will make this myself,” Richter said. While growing their shop, Queerest Gear, Richter has watched pride fashion expand over the years. They call increased rainbow representation in big-box and designer collections a “double-edged sword.” “It’s great, right, we’re seeing representation,” Richter said. “We’re being recognized as a group, but we are being recognized because we can be capitalized off of.” Frankie Nuñez, a southwest Detroit native who designs pride merchandise, said he sees it as “disingenuous.” “To me I always look at it, did they have queer people make this?” the Dearborn resident and artist said. “... They’re selling back to us what they think our experience is.” Other than queer creators getting

“IT’S GREAT, RIGHT, WE’RE SEEING REPRESENTATION. WE’RE BEING RECOGNIZED AS A GROUP, BUT WE ARE BEING RECOGNIZED BECAUSE WE CAN BE CAPITALIZED OFF OF.” — Jasper Richter

monetary support during pride, Nuñez said, what’s also important is what they bring to their products: an intimacy factor. “I guess I can only speak for me, but I feel like when queer people make things, it comes from a certain part of them,” he said. “They understand what being gay is, or being nonbinary ...” Nuñez started selling his art in 2017, but ramped up the business with marketing, rebranding and regular product releases after he lost his job at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic last year. His shop, Chunkysequins, offers cheeky prints like “My Gay Agenda” on a notebook, as well as enamel pins, stickers, earrings and more. “I can reclaim (certain words) and process. ‘This is how I was treated,’ but ‘This is me showing I have power over it,’” he said. Richter added that their entrepreneurship isn’t just a profession, it’s a way to connect with members of the community. Because of that, they are entrenched in these circles and have a line in to listen to what potential customers want, and how that changes over time.

Economic opportunity Entrepreneurship is an essential facet of LGBTQ economic success, said Curtis Lipscomb, executive director of nonprofit LGBT Detroit. LGBTQ Americans, and especially those who are Black, trans or other people of color, are especially vulnerable to economic instability. The pandemic, unsurprisingly, hasn’t helped. More LGBT Americans report they or someone in their home has lost a job during the pandemic than non-LGBT: 56 percent vs. 44 percent, a March Kaiser Family

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Foundation report found. Employment can be tough, between discrimination in hiring practices and difficulties faced in the workplace. “So highlighting people who have talent who can make things is important to me, so we are highly interested in making sure those people have an economic opportunity to thrive,” Lipscomb said. A question for many when it comes to pride commerce is: Where do the dollars go? One local example is Detroit-based Shinola announced last week a special pride watch that’s $450, and the company is selling 1,969 of them (that number is the year of the Stonewall uprising). So the luxury goods maker will take in $886,050 from those sales, and plans to give the equivalent of around 13 percent of those profits, or $120,000, to nonprofits SAGE Metro Detroit and the Ruth Ellis Center, according to a news release. “The Detrola Pride watch, and partnership with Shinola, will not only have an incredible impact on the hundreds of young people served by Ruth Ellis Center each year, but it honors the legacy of (namesake and lesbian activist) Ruth Ellis, who lived each day with pride,” said Mark Erwin, Ruth Ellis Center’s director of development and advancement. Kate Spade, a designer brand with three metro Detroit retail locations, released a limited-edition selection and is giving 20 percent of profits to suicide prevention nonprofit The Trevor Project. Other brands debut pride-themed products then partner separately with advocates. “If these big-box retailers are going to have a pride line, which I completely embrace, where are the proceeds going? The visual aspect of it is

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JUNE 7, 2021 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | 27

MAY MOBILITY

VACCINES

From Page 1

From Page 3

Green left an EV startup that caught lightning in a bottle to join an AV startup looking for a spark. May Mobility is almost unrecognizable from its founding in 2017. Since being spun out from the University of Michigan, the driverless shuttle company has grown from a handful of employees to 160 full-time workers, raised around $84 million and revamped its software and vehicle platform strategy. The expansion has not been all smooth, though. The COVID-19 pandemic gutted demand just as the company began penetrating new markets and proving its concept. Following a splashy debut in Detroit three years ago, its 1-mile shuttle route downtown is now defunct. But the company is adding service elsewhere, including Japan earlier this year and in Ann Arbor for the first time this fall. There’s pretty good consensus that autonomous vehicles are the way of the future, but nobody can predict when that future will arrive. Olson isn’t much for waiting. While some competitors toil away in R&D labs and closed test tracks, Olson said he would rather develop, deploy and learn from the real world to make improvements. “May Mobility’s really got a unique go-to-market strategy. We’ve taken a contrarian approach,” he said. “At our heart, we’re a bunch of tech nerds. We are really different than a lot of other AV companies, and we are maniacally focused on building the business.” May Mobility’s business is one part autonomous tech company, another part full-service shuttle provider. Employees include software developers and engineers, as well as on-site safety drivers, repair workers and staff who oversee operations of a route. Its target customers are municipalities, Olson said. Its strategy is to convince cities that its services are necessary by showcasing them during one-year pilot programs funded by public-private partnerships. “They’re really seeing the upside of what these vehicles can do,” Olson said. “We’re not here to replace buses unilaterally. We’re here to be a new tool. There are bus lines where the bus isn’t full all the time. For a city, empty buses are incredibly expensive.” May Mobility operates five shuttles in Grand Rapids, five in Arlington, Texas, and one in Japan, with six set to launch in Indianapolis this month and five in Ann Arbor starting Oct. 11, according to a company news release. It has so far delivered more than 275,000 rides on public roads. While the company as a whole is not profitable, its routes are generating positive gross margins, Olson said. He declined to discuss finan-

Peters said possible financial incentives, either from the state or individual health systems, could move the needle as well as vaccination policies for events like football games, concerts or conferences. “What if we have fall football games and are able to have full attendance but you have to show proof of vaccination?” Peters posited. “Or maybe rock concerts or conferences. Think of all these events that may require vaccination. I think once we see this critical mass building, people will realize they need to do this so they can have full access to enjoy these opportunities.” While no major collegiate or professional sporting events have yet mandated the vaccine for attendance, the Detroit Regional Chamber announced last month that vaccines will be required to attend its Mackinac Policy Conference on Mackinac Island in September. “We know there are complicating factors related to a mandate for a specific employee population, so if we can get to where we need to be without having to first implement a mandate, our members would prefer that,” Peters said. Dr. Rudolph Valentini, chief medical officer for Detroit Medical Center, said a mandate with that health system is unlikely until after full authorization from the federal Food & Drug Administration. All three COVID-19 vaccines are currently operating under an Emergency Use Authorization designed to allow drugmakers to develop and distribute vaccines quickly during an imminent threat like COVID-19. The current vaccines are technically designated as experimental until full FDA approval is given. Pfizer applied for full authorization of its vaccine last month and Moderna applied last week. It could take several months before full FDA approval is granted. “Once (full FDA approval) happens, it does tilt the mandate conversation slightly differently,” Valentini said. “That’s why we have seen most hospital systems not willing to take on the mandate,

Sites in the U.S. include one wheelchair-accessible Polaris shuttle. | MAY MOBILITY

Olson

Green

Leadership shakeups Scaling quickly may be the mission, Olson said, but equally important is creating streams of income to avoid merely burning through investor cash too quickly, a fate suffered by many a promising startup. It takes experience to avoid that pitfall, and that’s meant cycling out several high-level employees, including co-founders Alisyn Malek and Steve Vozar, for seasoned executives, often poached from larger competitors. In the past year, the company has hired Chief Product Officer Nina Grooms Lee away from Ford Motor Co., Vice President of People Tom Tang from General Motors Co.-owned Cruise and Vice President of Software Kamil Litman from StockX. Green had worked in leadership at Harley-Davidson a decade before a more than threeyear stint as CFO at Rivian, which was formerly headquartered in Plymouth. “There’s this transition that’s been playing out over this past year — transitioning from an early stage startup to a more well-established company with a deeper bench of leadership experience,” Olson said.

Opportunities close to home

May Mobility’s long-awaited launch in its hometown is another chance to establish itself in the southeast part of the state. Its deal with Bedrock in Detroit dis“THE PATH TO PROFITABILITY IS TO solved when employees evacuated downPUT THE VEHICLES ON THE ROAD.” town due to the — Edwin Olson, CEO, May Mobility coronavirus pandemic. Now that some are cials or offer a projection for when the returning, there could be an opportucompany might become profitable. nity to revisit the Bedrock partnership He said in comparison to competitors or establish others in the city, Olson such as Cruise, Waymo and Argo, said. May Mobility accounts for more than The Ann Arbor service, dubbed half of all the revenue generated from A2GO, is being funded by the Michigan autonomous shuttle rides. Economic Development Corp., which “The path to profitability is to put contributed a $142,000 grant, plus the vehicles on the road — each site UM’s Mcity, real estate developer 4M generates a little extra gas in the tank and economic development agency — and get enough vehicles to be a Ann Arbor Spark, which has served as profitable company,” Olson said. project convener. 28 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | JUNE 7, 2021

ies across sites. In Arlington, the company contracts with the city, and its rides are offered through Via, a mobile app connecting passengers with shared rides around town. For now, shuttles in Arlington are the only ones that charge passengers. The cost is $3 per trip, though University of Texas Arlington students are provided a limited number of free rides. Olson said the company is forging new partnerships and close to announcing new launch sites. “We’re still super motivated by the transportation problems that face cities,” he said.

Platform pivot May Mobility will launch five A2GO autonomous shuttles in Ann Arbor starting Oct. 11.

During the one-year pilot, May Mobility will operate shared, on-demand shuttles along the 2.6 square-mile service area downtown. Rides are free for the public to summon via the May Mobility mobile app. Every shuttle in Ann Arbor and across the company’s fleet is staffed with a safety driver. Olson said that while the software has improved, shuttles are still unsafe to be driverless in some scenarios, including in rain. Heidi Poscher, founding partner at 4M, said it is contributing a six-figure investment to the project and funding construction of a shuttle stop outside its new development concept in Ann Arbor — a 63-bed “shared” apartment building and co-working campus. The service fit perfectly into the real estate firm’s vision of a “15-minute” neighborhood where daily needs are easily accessible, she said. “The opportunity for May is extending its route to the southern part of town,” Poscher said. “I think it’s really beneficial for May to collect data in a heavily residential area.” Deployments in Ann Arbor and elsewhere seem to be as much about learning how to make money from the service as they are an exercise in improving technology. “Mcity’s involvement in A2GO relates to data collection,” said Susan Carney, spokeswoman for Mcity, which contributed $200,000 to the service. “We’ll be instrumenting some intersections along the route, and collecting naturalistic driving data. Naturalistic data is captured from vehicles operating in real-world conditions.” May Mobility’s operating model var-

When the pandemic stopped all but essential transit last year, May Mobility used the down time to address some of its own problems. May Mobility’s shuttles had been powered by Polaris all-electric GEMs, which were modified and outfitted with its autonomous technology. They were good starter vehicles, Olson said, but they had limits in speed and range, as well as the comfort and amenities they could offer riders. So earlier this year, the company switched to 2020 Lexus RX450H hybrid SUVs, marking its first AV integration into an OEM’s platform, according to a news release. Modifications include the installation of seven cameras, a top-mounted long-range Velodyne Alpha Prime lidar, four short-range Ouster lidars, five radars and a disinfecting UV-C light. Sites in the U.S. still include one wheelchair-accessible Polaris vehicle so the service remains accessible and the company is ADA compliant. Toyota was the largest investor in May Mobility’s Series B fundraising round, but the amount it invested has not been disclosed. Olson said it was not a controlling interest and that May Mobility “is not a subsidiary of Toyota.” He said the majority of the company is still owned by a small group of stakeholders including Olson, who is listed as resident agent of the company in filings with the state. The next move for May Mobility is another fundraising round this year with a capital goal to be announced, Olson said. And, of course, plenty more fine-tuning of its shuttles, guided by customer experience and ever-evolving autonomous technology. “It’s safety first, then rider experience, and autonomy third,” he said. Contact: knagl@crain.com; (313) 446-0337; @kurt_nagl

TRACKING

From Page 3

Navv Systems’ technology, licensed to the company in 2019, was first conceived through Henry Ford Innovations, the development and commercialization arm of the Detroit-based health care system. The technology is in use at all six of Henry Ford’s hospitals and used for patient transport, housekeeping and central pharmacy deliveries. “We are really excited by the increased functionality that the NavvTrack provides for hospital operations,” Dr. Richard “Chip” Davis, senior vice president for Henry Ford Health System and CEO of the Henry Ford South Market and Henry Ford Hospital, said in an emailed statement to Crain’s. “It has improved efficiencies and made better use of hospital resources like patient transport and housekeeping services,

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Peters

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but if and when full approval is attained, I think you’ll see the health care community move as one toward mandating.” Roughly 70 percent of DMC employees are fully vaccinated. At this moment, it’s unclear whether Henry Ford will wait for the FDA to move on approvals for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. “It’s our history and philosophy to lead on things that are the right to do,” Riney said. Currently, 67 percent of Henry Ford’s employees are fully vaccinated. At Beaumont, nearly two-thirds of

How it works The tracking technology being deployed by Navv Systems to hospitals and health care systems can: ` Help patients and visitors to the hospital with navigating the facility. ` Provide for transport services around the hospital, helping to ensure the correct doctors, health care staff and necessary equipment are in the right place at the right time. ` Assist with supply chain and delivery of health care equipment.

equipment utilization and visitor wayfinding across all five of our acute-care hospitals.” In addition to being the company’s co-founder and CEO, Siegal is the vice chair of the radiology department at Henry Ford Health System and has a background in computer science. The company’s other co-founder and CTO, Paul Zieske, has a back-

Another reason health systems may be waiting for the full FDA approval is the potential for litigation. While the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission last week issued guidance clearing many legal hurdles for employers to mandate the vaccine, the EUA appears to remain contentious. Houston Methodist announced its COVID-19 vaccine mandate on March 31 and only weeks later a group of 117 employees sued the organization in Texas district court, alleging the hospital system is “illegally requiring its employees to be inject-

ed with an experimental vaccine as a condition of employment.” The employees allege Houston Methodist administrators of violating the Nuremberg Code — the medical ethics code drafted in 1947 banning human experimentation in response to acts committed by Germany during World War II. However, it’s unlikely this or any other legal challenge would upend a vaccination mandate for hospital workers, said Sara Jodka, partner and labor and employment attorney at law firm Dickinson Wright PLLC in Columbus, Ohio. “The vaccine will be mandated at most health care systems because if you are not vaxxed, you could get it and pass it on to someone that could be a patient and bringing the illness into the workplace when it is something you can control is out of the question for most hospitals,” Jodka said. “There are very few legitimate exemptions and because there are many different vaccines for the virus, accommodating employees should

be relatively easy. I’ve yet to see a legal objection at this point go further than you can just get another vaccine.” For example, to meet the religious exemption guidelines, an employee must demonstrate the mandate violates a deeply held religious belief against, say, certain chemicals in the vaccine. Some religious workers have sought an exemption from vaccines that use fetal cells to grow the dormant virus. None of the COVID-19 vaccines, however, use human cells like some vaccines, such as the chickenpox, hepatitis A and rabies vaccines. However, it’s also unlikely that hospital systems will challenge exemptions if they appear to meet the criteria, said Grant Pecor, partner and management labor attorney for Barnes & Thornburg LLP in Grand Rapids. Pecor said lawsuits will likely be filed against health systems that challenge religious exemptions but that those would likely fail as well.

ground as an engineer and in health care IT. Navv Systems projects revenue of about $500,000 or just over for this year, and expects that figure to triple next year. The company has five employees and seeks to grow to 10-15 over the next 12-18 months, according to Siegal. Siegal said Navv Systems seeks to rely on a “confluence of technologies” and works with Apple Inc.’s indoor positioning system that allows for tracking of a hospital floor plan. Existing tracking technologies like radio-frequency identification, or RFID, have traditionally been very expensive for hospitals to implement at scale, Siegal said. While acknowledging a good amount of competition in the health care equipment-tracking sector, Siegal said Navv Systems aims to differentiate itself by offering a single platform. For competitors, the CEO points to companies such as Connexient Inc. and AerosScout Industrial.

“If you were to try and do this using some of the other existing tools that are out there, you’d have to have separate solutions that don’t necessarily talk or play nicely with one another,” Siegal said. The CEO added that because the company is focused on using software rather than hardware, the platform can be up and running at a hospital in a manner of weeks. Additionally, Siegal said Navv Systems relies on what he called a “responsive web app” for patients and visitors using the company’s service on their mobile device for navigating the hospital complex. Doing so, he said, means the person does not need to worry about trying to download a new mobile application as they enter the facility. Brian Peters, CEO of the Michigan Health & Hospital Association, said the need for modernizing the health care supply chain has grown exponentially in recent years as more health systems are becoming integrated with thousands of employees

and equipment across several facilities. “Years ago, health care in the state of Michigan, in particular, consisted of primarily independent hospitals that did not have relationships with other hospitals and skilled nursing facilities,” Peters said. “Today, that looks very different. There’s a number of large integrated health systems that have a large regional or even multi-state footprint. We are much more sophisticated now than ever before in health care. Not only supply chain management. But how we deploy staff. That’s taken on a very different look in recent years.” Supply chain management is a critical focus for the industry, he said. “Making sure you have the right people and the right equipment and supplies in the right setting and the right amount is paramount now,” Peters said. “We are an operation that is running 24/7, 365, and we don’t know minute by minute who is going to walk though the door at the hospital and what services they will need.”

Beaumont’s employees have been vaccinated. “We are working closely with our infectious disease experts and others to encourage more employees to get vaccinated,” Beaumont said in a statement. Michigan Medicine said in a statement that it “strongly encourages” vaccination for its employees.

Resignation and litigation

“Courts have been strict,” Pecor said. “There’s ultimately a Christian belief of do no harm. Refusing a vaccine in this case can do harm and being Christian doesn’t form a legitimate basis for refusing.” Politics are also a concern, Peters said. Roughly 23 states have enacted limited “vaccine passports” or requirements; but many of them preclude health systems. “There are many lawmakers and influential individuals in communities who are very much opposed to a vaccine mandate,” Peters said. “To the extent that there could be public policy that would not only create a roadblock for the COVID vaccine and might complicate the vaccine mandate for flu. Health systems, particularly in rural communities, may not want to toe that line right now.” Pecor challenges the notion that systems are waiting for FDA approval or taking legal factors into consideration. Instead, labor market forces are driving the decision. “It’s not who is going to mandate first or when the FDA gives approval, it’s when the labor market stabilizes,” Pecor said. “They are all facing labor shortages right now. If they have employees who won’t get vaccinated and walk away, what are they going to do when they can’t replace them?” Peters agrees staffing plays a role. “CEOs are fearful of implementing a vaccine at this time as it could push some of their critical care staffers out of the system and they can’t afford to do that right now,” Peters said. Valentini said some staff did quit when DMC mandated the flu vaccine nearly a decade ago. And that is an ongoing consideration on whether to mandate the COVID-19 vaccine or not, he said. Riney said the potential mandate would not be swayed by labor force considerations. “The workforce shortages weigh gravely on our minds regardless of the vaccination issue,” Riney said. “It’s hard to recruit and retain talent in certain areas, yes, but it wouldn’t get in the way of doing something we decided was the right thing to do. We would work like heck to mitigate those concerns. We can’t not do what is in the right interest of our team members and those we serve over our inability to staff.” Contact: dwalsh@crain.com; (313) 446-6042; @dustinpwalsh Life science and health care-focused startups such as Navv Systems accounted for the majority, 40 percent, of venture capital dollars invested in Michigan last year, according to the most recent research report released by the Novi-based Michigan Venture Capital Association trade group. As part of the Navv Systems deal, Arboretum Ventures Managing Partner Tim Petersen will join the company’s board of directors. “We’ve been very impressed with the sophistication of Navv’s technology, and the early customer traction Dan and his team have achieved,” Petersen said in a statement. “Navv is another prime example of clinician-led innovation emanating from a world-class organization like Henry Ford, addressing an important and immediate health care challenge.” — Crain’s Senior Reporter Dustin Walsh contributed to this report. Contact: nmanes@crain.com; (313) 446-1626; @nickrmanes JUNE 7, 2021 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | 29

THE CONVERSATION

Ascension Michigan market leader on weathering COVID-19 storm ASCENSION MICHIGAN: Dr. Kenneth Berkovitz, ministry market executive, has some big shoes to fill, as previous executives in Michigan have gone on to larger jobs at St. Louis-based Ascension Health, the nation’s largest nonprofit health system with 141 hospitals and $22 billion in annual revenue. Before arriving in Michigan in 2018 to serve as president of the new Ascension Medical Group, Michigan market, Berkovitz served as CEO of the Cardiovascular Institute of OSF Healthcare System in Peoria, Ill. In March 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic was beginning, he took over Ascension Michigan’s 16 hospitals and 22,000 employees. | BY JAY GREENE `You are originally from Los Angeles, completed your residency at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, worked in Ohio and Illinois. How did you end up in Michigan? I have been a clinical cardiologist and was involved in a lot of medical staff roles, and then cardiovascular leadership. I moved to Michigan because of the opportunity to lead the Ascension Medical Group. My connection to Michigan was with (Dr. Joseph Cacchione, who’s now in charge of clinical and network services for Ascension Health). We’ve known each other for a very long time and were residents together and stayed in touch over the years. My wife and I are really happy to be here. `What did you do while president of Michigan’s Ascension Medical Group? This was a newly created position in our market to align our local AMG entities and develop a statewide business and operational strategy. In two-plus years, I worked closely to create a cohesive clinical network and combine 1,100 employed providers at more than 300 practice locations in Southeast Michigan, mid-Michigan and West Michigan. This physician network is the foundation of our growth strategy across Michigan and serves as a catalyst for transforming care.

There is no plan to do any major reorganization. Right now, I think we’re comfortable where we are. I like our teams. Our next thing in Michigan, I know it isn’t very sexy, is to focus on stability and have some consistency within the market so the community gets to know and develop relationships with leaders and our medical staff. `How did Ascension Michigan fare with COVID-19? We were able to move resources around at the drop of a hat. Whether it was medications, personnel, PPE or respiratory equipment. Detroit was the epicenter of the first wave of COVID around the country and what we learned in Southeast Michigan we were able to share with other markets. When we needed more staff, we were able to draw on hospitals outside of Michigan. We are also bringing in staff not to deal with the surge, but to fill in for those who have worked long hours so they can get time off to recharge their batteries.

`Before you arrived in Michigan, Ascension Michigan laid off more than 500 health care workers to cut costs by $60 million, re-engineered the workforce and restructured operations. Are more changes planned? Our Michigan market is on a journey to where we are now. Functionally, we have three regions — southeast, southwest and mid and northern Michigan. What we’ve done has been very successful to act as a marketwide organization. It helped us deal with the COVID pandemic.

`Was Ascension and the health care industry prepared enough for COVID-19? COVID is a once in a lifetime, once in a century event. So in terms of being prepared, when it became apparent that this was going to be the issue that it was, our national team told us take care of the patient and take care of the staff. With those as our marching orders, we really were able to concentrate our efforts and really ramp up and take this COVID situation head on. We did not have to worry about any financial issues. We took the posture there would be no layoffs of staff due to economic consequences of COVID. There will be no furloughing of staff. We wanted everybody to focus on the matter at hand, which was figuring out how to deal with COVID.

`In previous years, Ascension Michigan region was one of the administrative and clinical test sites for the national system. Do you plan any further reorganization or changes?

`Are hospitals seeing patients return for testing and elective procedures? We are sticking to our guiding principles of taking care of the patients and taking care of our associates. We have capacity

for elective procedures, but it’s around making sure that our associates are doing OK. The asks that we’re putting on this staff in terms of taking care of these increased volumes of both COVID and non-COVID patients is a real hardship. It’s a tough balancing act.

Dr. Kenneth Berkovitz, ministry market executive, Ascension Michigan

` As a doctor, what concerns do you have about patients? One of the things we learned with the first wave, as we told everybody to stay home, is that we probably overshot, so to speak. We cannot delay a lot of medical care. In addition to COVID-related deaths, there is increased risk of heart attack, stroke and cancer presenting later. We have made our facilities safe so we can care for both COVID and non-COVID patients.

REPORTERS

Jason Davis, small and emerging businesses. (313) 446-1612 or Jason.davis@crain.com Annalise Frank, city of Detroit. (313) 446-0416 or afrank@crain.com Jay Greene, senior reporter, health care and energy. (313) 446-0325 or jgreene@crain.com Nick Manes, finance and technology. (313) 446-1626 or nmanes@crain.com Kurt Nagl, higher education, business of sports. (313) 446-0337 or knagl@crain.com Kirk Pinho, senior reporter, real estate. (313) 446-0412 or kpinho@crain.com Dustin Walsh, senior reporter, economy and workforce, manufacturing, cannabis. (313) 446-6042 or dwalsh@crain.com Sherri Welch, senior reporter, nonprofits and philanthropy. (313) 446-1694 or swelch@crain.com

`Are patients returning for needed or preventive care? Our message to patients lately has been be safe, but come, don’t delay your care. In fact, during the last surge, a lot of our team was jokingly saying, “Can you slow down? Your commercials are working too well” because not only did we have higher activity the last few weeks due to COVID, but we also were seeing a lot of non-COVID activity in our emergency rooms at levels that we hadn’t seen since the pandemic started.

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`Do you have plans to help your workforce get back to normal? We have what we call “serenity rooms” in our facilities where our staff can go and just get away and relax. Recently, at our Genesys Hospital in Grand Blanc, our staff led a walkout celebration with clapping early one morning for staff leaving and staff coming in. We’re trying to do a lot of things big and small to support all the extra work that’s being done. Our staff is our most important commodity, and we’re trying to do everything we can to take care of them.

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RUMBLINGS

Rocket signs LPGA Tour star Lexi Thompson as ‘golf ambassador’ Rocket Mortgage continues to make inroads into the professional golf world, with the company announcing Tuesday that it has inked a sponsorship deal with LPGA Tour star Lexi Thompson. Thompson, 26, will stand along side PGA Tour players Rickie Fowler and Bryson DeChambeau as “golf ambassadors” for the mortgage lender, part of Detroit-based Rocket Companies Inc. (NYSE: RKT), the suite of companies controlled by billionaire Dan Gilbert. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Thompson, an 11-time LPGA 30 | CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS | JUNE 7, 2021

Lexi Thompson is the latest pro golfer to ink a sponsorship deal with Detroit-based Rocket Mortgage.

winner with nearly $11 million in career earnings, will wear the company’s logo on her left sleeve during tour play and represent the company along with Fowler and DeChambeau, according to a news release. “It is an honor to have Lexi on the Rocket Mortgage team and use our partnership to demonstrate the value that women bring to both the game of golf, our company and the mortgage industry,” Casey Hurbis, chief marketing office for Rocket Mortgage’s marketing arm, Rock Central, said in the release. “She is a great representation of true profes-

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Editor-in-Chief Keith E. Crain Publisher KC Crain Group Publisher Jim Kirk, (312) 397-5503 or jkirk@crain.com Associate Publisher Lisa Rudy, (313) 446-6032 or lrudy@crain.com Executive Editor Kelley Root, (313) 446-0319 or kelley.root@crain.com Managing Editor Michael Lee, (313) 446-1630 or malee@crain.com Digital Portfolio Manager Tim Simpson, (313) 446-6788 or tsimpson@crain.com Assistant Managing Editor Dawn Bradbury, (313) 446-5800 or dbradbury@crain.com News Editor Beth Reeber Valone, (313) 446-5875 or bvalone@crain.com Senior Editor Chad Livengood, (313) 446-1654 or clivengood@crain.com Special Projects Editor Amy Elliott Bragg, (313) 446-1646 or abragg@crain.com Design and Copy Editor Beth Jachman, (313) 446-0356 or bjachman@crain.com Research and Data Editor Sonya Hill, (313) 446-0402 or shill@crain.com Newsroom (313) 446-0329, FAX (313) 446-1687 TIP LINE (313) 446-6766

sionalism and a role model for girls across the country who can draw inspiration from Lexi’s dedication and drive — from a young golfer winning events to now one of the most dominant players on the tour.” Rocket Mortgage reported spending just less than $1 billion on marketing efforts in 2020. Professional sports accounted for about 30 percent of that overall spend, as Crain’s has previously reported. The mortgage lender is the title sponsor for the Rocket Mortgage Classic, a PGA Tour event set for July 1-4 at the Detroit Golf Club on the city’s northwest side.

Chairman Keith E. Crain Vice Chairman Mary Kay Crain CEO KC Crain Senior Executive Vice President Chris Crain Secretary Lexie Crain Armstrong Chief Financial Officer Robert Recchia G.D. Crain Jr. Founder (1885-1973) Mrs. G.D. Crain Jr. Chairman (1911-1996) Editorial & Business Offices 1155 Gratiot Ave., Detroit MI 48207-2732; (313) 446-6000 Cable address: TWX 248-221-5122 AUTNEW DET CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS ISSN # 0882-1992 is published weekly, except no issues on 1/4/21 nor 12/27/21, combined issues on 5/24/21 and 5/31/21, 8/30/21 and 9/6/21, 11/15/21 and 11/22/21, by Crain Communications Inc. at 1155 Gratiot Ave., Detroit MI 48207-2732. Periodicals postage paid at Detroit, MI and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS, Circulation Department, P.O. Box 07925, Detroit, MI 48207-9732. GST # 136760444. Printed in U.S.A. Contents copyright 2021 by Crain Communications Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of editorial content in any manner without permission is prohibited.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Together

DAVID FOLTYN Chairman and CEO, Honigman LLP

Through difficult times, strong leadership makes all the difference. David Foltyn, chairman and CEO of Honigman LLP, helped shepherd our organization through unprecedented times. In a global pandemic, David’s leadership ensured that United Way for Southeastern Michigan could help those most impacted by COVID-19. David’s two years as United Way for Southeastern Michigan’s board chair come to an end this summer, and Mark Stiers, president and COO, Power & Industrial at DTE Energy, takes the helm. Mark’s steady leadership will serve our organization and our community well as we emerge from the pandemic and enter a new way of life. From all of us at United Way for Southeastern Michigan:

Thank you David and Mark! MARK STIERS President and COO, Power & Industrial, DTE Energy

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