[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6123530,"mediaKeyId","2689488-4f95412e54cb55de461431a8beeacdb1","parentId",2689488,"title","MDHHS describes laboratory testing volume, newborn screening and new consolidated state lab due Dec. 2026","audioSeconds",422,"startMs",661000,"endMs",1083000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2689488-4f95412e54cb55de461431a8beeacdb1&start=661&end=1083","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2689488-4f95412e54cb55de461431a8beeacdb1/thumbnail_661000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6123530/Michigan/MDHHS-describes-laboratory-testing-volume-newborn-screening-and-new-consolidated-state-lab-due-Dec-2026","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6123530-aeb89c1dfd827c14363b40a776846452/orig.mp4?Expires=1770930121&Signature=FGK4ikM9BfCG2wuLOP0BOmAIhxPrAKYfP7vnOHVuT7tLAQnXbJ9S2S5Dpi~eGg2TqFJ84kp1oDdF33H-4sChN4V7ZxSeqMnhu9xUZtw8eiOwvYQfWx-oi8XUZif3Hmmp6nJj2hlaTSMS8AzIeADzGj~xhJQRDAMxYo34Mft1D9bPPDmFDpYs-x3KoxafjsbcrIDahI5fxLRrSuSH3ync13Hw9PypOlx4QiBIMbKcMuhEScMCJiyao1v~EXXfmG3cmbqjc3K3f1d23ysYZrVm2U16Rl4I-heIaQQNYXmL1MOKjjy2xyZI9BxI3WTeixSbjgY~2owJIDhdDIbpVJj1oQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Michigan Legislature","date","2025-03-18T00:00:00Z","article","Michigan Department of Health and Human Services officials told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Public Health that the state's public health laboratory system conducts millions of tests each year, operates a network of seven regional labs and is building a new consolidated laboratory expected to be completed in December 2026.

“This CLIA and CAP certified lab conducts nearly 7,000,000 tests every year, making it 1 of the top 7 public health, state public health labs in the nation,” Dr. Sarah Lancallo, who oversees the department’s Public Health Administration, told lawmakers. She said the bureau tests human, animal and environmental samples, supports outbreak investigations, and runs Michigan’s newborn screening program.

The bureau screens for 58 disorders in newborns, Lancallo said. “Last year, the laboratory conducted 110,000 newborn screens, and each year we identify more than 300 Michigan babies who need immediate response,” she said.

Lancallo and Amy Eppke, senior deputy director of financial operations at MDHHS, described how the laboratory network operates under a hub-and-spoke model with the main facility on North Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Lansing and seven regional labs hosted by local health departments. Officials said the arrangement speeds testing statewide and provides redundancy when machines or sites have problems.

Lawmakers heard reasons for building a new consolidated laboratory on Crowner Drive in Diamondale. Lancallo said the existing building is aging and has practical limits: instruments are sensitive to vibration from nearby trains and airport traffic, the facility is physically full and cannot accommodate new tests or more staff, and some problems cannot be solved with remodeling.

“The new lab … will enable MDHHS to double our footprint, making us more safe, efficient, and accurate, but also preparing us for the next 25 years,” Lancallo said. She told the committee the Department of Technology, Management and Budget is leading the construction to bring together the Bureau of Laboratories, Eagle’s Laboratory Services and LEO’s Occupational Health Laboratory under one roof. Officials said the foundation and framing work were underway and that staff will begin moving equipment after completion in December 2026; both sites will operate in parallel for a period while tests are revalidated in the new facility.

Committee members asked technical and operational questions about the lab’s role in outbreak response, partnerships with federal agencies and the practical steps involved in revalidating tests after a move. Lancallo emphasized the lab’s role in rapid investigations, sequencing and coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; she described the 2022 E. coli outbreak investigation in which sequencing and interviews helped identify a national restaurant chain as the source and end the outbreak within three weeks.

Officials also invited lawmakers to view facilities and provided a contact for follow-up. “If you’re interested in hearing more, perhaps seeing some of the facilities, you could certainly reach out to Shardae Burton about that,” Lancallo said.

Ending: The subcommittee did not take a formal vote on lab-specific funding in the hearing; members asked for follow-up details on operational timelines and the revalidation process as the construction progresses.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Appropriations - Public Health - 3/18/2025","oneSentenceSummary","Michigan Department of Health and Human Services officials told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Public Health that the state's public health laboratory system conducts millions of tests each year, operates a network of seven regional labs and is building a new consolidated laboratory expected to be completed in December 2026.","taxTitle","2025 House Legislature MI, Michigan","taxId",77683,"location","Michigan","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6123526,"MDHHS presents FY26 budget proposals: vaping tax estimated $57M, $20M to maintain crime victim services; lawmakers press on federal funding risk",1927,273000,2200000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2689488-4f95412e54cb55de461431a8beeacdb1&start=273&end=2200","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2689488-4f95412e54cb55de461431a8beeacdb1/thumbnail_273000.jpg","/articles/6123526/Michigan/MDHHS-presents-FY26-budget-proposals-vaping-tax-estimated-57M-20M-to-maintain-crime-victim-services-lawmakers-press-on-federal-funding-risk","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6123526-d91bdaa1f117b3c4d229ce544645390a/orig.mp4?Expires=1770930121&Signature=VhWev6zUw8u04CB4qPt7~zQe12Oeavak7FQyd3tAQUcgnYyIkIl-yhYqvq8Fto4ygW3VANgDJZqUs5G3HSnek5ZCsNu8DCq~SLA0o2aes48F3PL9SGE7pu0WCIeeimwMfRYtc10ekhyxP2jGKrpoa9bdp7KbpvLIy8hdO4a7XS97HkGljNzxg0VvguTxFPyQoAbbsyfQ6ycbwrhRh~QlqxTFwONOXnIcz-T8t6xGl-O6qFMnB0A-iF5U09RmDow8MuuVzA-mkZeOQ1X4LpnU3KRwu8ZOO5ZdXiCxEFKJd1FHkBB~mwsHMObsV9O8q1t~p1NSdubqIGHZW515SL-LMw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Michigan Department of Health and Human Services officials briefed the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Public Health on the department’s fiscal year 2026 executive recommendation, highlighting three specific investments and pressing lawmakers on the department’s reliance on federal funding.

“A vaping tax that is estimated to generate $57,000,000 annually … those funds would partially support smoking prevention, cancer prevention, and youth mental health,” Amy Eppke, senior deputy director of financial operations at MDHHS, told the subcommittee. Eppke said the FY26 executive recommendation includes that vaping tax alongside two other investments: $20,000,000 in state funding to maintain existing crime victim services and funding to implement a paramedic competency exam required by Public Act 48 of 2024.

Eppke said the additional $20 million is intended “to continue the services that are being provided to 147 crime victims across the state,” and that the request responds to declining federal funds for the program. Committee members pressed staff for more detail about who provides those services and how redundancy is avoided. Representative Steele asked for a list of the roughly 120 organizations the department contracts with or funds to provide crime-victim services; MDHHS agreed to provide the list and supporting performance information at a future hearing.

Lawmakers repeatedly raised the department’s dependence on federal funding. MDHHS staff said about 70% of the department budget is federal money and identified a key Centers for Disease Control and Prevention grant — the Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity (ELC) grant — as supporting dozens of positions that underpin communicable-disease response. MDHHS staff said the ELC grant supports 64 positions; officials warned that losing that grant would reduce rapid-response capacity and local health department support.

Committee members asked whether state funding in the executive recommendation replaces federal funds already backfilled by the state in prior years. Eppke said the existing budget already included $30,000,000 in general fund support to backfill federal reductions and that the FY26 request adds $20,000,000 to offset further declines.

Other questions during the hearing ranged from how the agency decides to operate a state-run lab versus contracting with private laboratories to advertising spend and whether vaping prevention materials address marijuana use. MDHHS committed to follow up with detailed lists and numbers lawmakers requested, including the list of victim-service organizations and the department’s advertising expenditures.

Votes at a glance: Representative Price moved to approve the minutes of the March 11, 2025 meeting; there being no objections, the minutes were approved by unanimous consent.

Ending: The subcommittee did not vote on the executive recommendation itself during this meeting; members requested follow-up briefings and documentation before any appropriation decisions.","Michigan Department of Health and Human Services officials told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Public Health that the FY26 executive recommendation includes a vaping tax estimated to generate $57 million annually, $20 million to maintain crime victim services and funding to administer a paramedic competency exam required by Public Act 48 of 2024.","actionData","errors"]

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MDHHS describes laboratory testing volume, newborn screening and new consolidated state lab due Dec. 2026

MDHHS presents FY26 budget proposals: vaping tax estimated $57M, $20M to maintain crime victim services; lawmakers press on federal funding risk