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Report: COVID deaths in long-term care facilities underreported

The difference between the auditor's number and what the state health department had reported — 5,675 — is nearly 30%.

MICHIGAN, USA — A new report shows a discrepancy in the state of Michigan's counting and reporting of COVID-19 deaths in long-term care facilities.

A report released Monday by Michigan's Office of the Auditor General shows that deaths in these types of facilities is significantly higher that what the state had previously reported.

According to the Associated Press, auditors reported 8,061 confirmed or positive COVID-19 deaths tied to nursing homes, homes for the aged and adult foster-care facilities as of early July. The difference between that number and what the state health department had reported — 5,675 — is nearly 30%.

The Mackinac Center for Public Policy is a group focused on helping the public understand government policy and has spent nearly a year working to try and get the state to investigate the numbers. 

After the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services denied a Freedom of Information Act request from journalist Charlie LeDuff seeking information about Michigan's death count, the Mackinac Center took legal action and won a lawsuit against the department. The state then released some of the information that was being requested by LeDuff.

From a limited review of those records, LeDuff and the Mackinac Center concluded that the state was not providing an accurate count of deaths in long-term care facilities. The Center testified in front of the Michigan House Oversight Committee in June 2021, requesting a full accounting of the state's COVID-19 long-term care deaths. A month later, it was announced that the auditor general would review those deaths.

Mackinac Center's Director of Transparency and Open Government, Steve Delie, said this is just the beginning of many questions they will continue to push for.

"What we've learned is that we have a problem, and that's been confirmed," he said, "and now we need to find a way to solve it. I'm eager to work with anyone who's interested in doing that to try and make it better."

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services responded to the Office of the Auditor General's analysis saying they do not believe it was accurate because they were relying on data that had different definitions. 

They said the Auditor General included numbers from facilities that are not required to report deaths to the state, causing the discrepancy. 

You can read the full report analysis, and the response by MDHHS by clicking the links below.

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