The MHA released another episode of the MiCare Champion Cast, which features interviews with healthcare policy experts in Michigan on key issues that impact healthcare and the health of communities.
On this episode, Laura Appel, executive vice president of government relations and public policy at the MHA, discusses the upcoming general election which will set the stage for critical healthcare decisions for Michigan and the nation in the years ahead. Appel explains how voting directly impacts healthcare in Michigan and outlines details on this year’s candidates and ballot proposals.
The episode, currently available via Spotify, YouTube, Apple Podcasts and SoundCloud, also explores examples of past and present legislation that have had a lasting impact on healthcare, along with key dates to keep in mind ahead of Election Day.
In November, Michigan voters will help elect the next governor, attorney general and secretary of state of Michigan, decide who will represent the state in all 13 Michigan seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, plus cast ballots for all 110 seats of the Michigan House of Representatives and 38 seats of the Michigan Senate, among other contests.
The MHA MI Vote Matters 2022 election webpage provides the latest information about the election. Members are encouraged to use #MIVoteMatters to join the election 2022 conversation on social media and follow along for the MHA’s Race of The Week series to learn more about candidates and ballot proposals.
The MiCare Champion Cast is part of the statewide #MiCareMatters campaign, launched in 2017, which aims to build a network of citizens — “MiCare Champions” — who will be called upon to engage in advocacy efforts to protect access to affordable healthcare services in Michigan.
Members with questions or who would like to submit ideas for future podcasts should contact Lucy Ciaramitaro at the MHA.
Incumbent Democrat Dana Nessel is a former Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor and civil rights attorney. As Attorney General, Nessel pursued the financial settlement with opioid manufacturers and distributors which will eventually bring more than $700 million to Michigan to treat and combat opioid addiction. The Attorney General is also actively working on implementing the Clean Slate Act of 2021, which expands on the types and numbers of offenses that can be expunged from a person’s record allowing for more opportunities for education and employment. The Attorney General’s role in the expungement is to determine whether an applicant is statutorily eligible to have the conviction(s) expunged from their record.
Republican Matthew DePerno is a tax attorney and conservative activist. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan and Detroit Mercy School of Law. DePerno is most widely known for his claims of fraud in the 2020 election and subsequent attempts to obtain voting machines and initiate a forensic audit. Those efforts are currently under investigation but remain the core message behind his campaign. For more information, visit depernoformi.com.
Justice Richard Bernstein was elected to the Michigan Supreme Court in 2014, becoming Michigan’s first blind justice. Prior to serving on the Supreme Court, he worked for The Sam Bernstein Law Firm. Bernstein also won election to the Wayne State University Board of Governors in 2002 and served until 2010. For more information, visit theblindjustice.com.
State Representative Kyra Harris Bolden (D-Southfield) is currently serving her second term in the Michigan State House, where she is a member of the House Judiciary Committee. Prior to elected office, Bolden was a criminal defense attorney, clerked in Wayne County’s Third Circuit Court and worked as a civil litigation attorney. For more information, visit boldenforjustice.com.
Justice Brian Zahra was first appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court in 2011 by Gov. Rick Snyder. Zahra was elected to a partial term in 2012 and a full term in 2014. Prior to serving on the Supreme Court, he served 12 years on the Michigan Court of Appeals and four years on the Wayne County Circuit Court. For more information, visit 
Paul Hudson chairs the appeals group at Miller Canfield law firm and has argued more than 150 cases in the Michigan appeals courts. Prior to that, Hudson clerked in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. For more information, visit 
Incumbent Democrat Jocelyn Benson is the former CEO and executive director of the Ross Initiative in Sports for Equality, a national nonprofit dedicated to improving race relations and driving social progress in professional sports. She is a graduate of Wellesley College, Harvard Law School and Oxford University, and is a former dean of Wayne State University Law School. During her time as Secretary of State, Benson has focused her efforts on election access. She played a key role in advocating for opportunities to vote early and by mail, particularly during the early-pandemic election in 2020. For more information, visit 
Republican Kristina Karamo is a public speaking and college orientation professor at Wayne County Community College. Her prior political experience is highlighted by an unsuccessful attempt in 2018 to serve as Oakland County Commissioner for the 10th District. She also served on the Right to Life of Michigan’s Black Leadership Committee, and as communications chair for the Oakland County Republican Party and the Michigan Republican Party State Committee. Karamo is primarily focused on the issue of election security after claiming she witnessed fraud while serving as a poll challenger during the 2020 election. Karama is a graduate of Oakland University and Biola University in La Mirada, California. For more information, visit 
Incumbent Gretchen Whitmer is an attorney and formerly served as a member of the Michigan House of Representatives and the Michigan Senate. The MHA maintains a strong, positive working relationship with Whitmer as it did throughout her years as an elected official. During her time in the Senate, Whitmer established herself as a healthcare champion through her work as Senate Minority Leader to expand healthcare coverage through the Healthy Michigan Plan, an effort that the MHA and its member hospitals advocated for and continue to support. Governor Whitmer continued that trajectory in her executive role, leading the state through a very difficult time in healthcare with the COVID-19 pandemic and on-going behavioral health crisis. Whitmer’s running mate for lieutenant governor remains Garlin Gilchrist II, Detroit’s first-ever director of innovation and emerging technology and a former software engineer at Microsoft. For more information, visit 
Tudor Dixon is a former steel industry employee and conservative media activist. Dixon’s early career focused on industrial sales for heavy equipment in the agriculture, automotive and energy sectors, among others. After beating a breast cancer diagnosis, Tudor left the steel industry to begin her media career. Dixon worked with Lumen News, where she developed pro-America, pro-constitution morning news programs for grade school students. Dixon’s running mate is Shane Hernandez, a former architectural designer and state representative from Port Huron. Hernandez served as the Appropriations Chair for the Michigan House of Representatives from 2019-2020. For more information, visit