MDHHS/McKinsey & Co. COVID-19 Data Management: Regional Hubs, Nursing Homes in Michigan
It is a clone of this request.
| Tracking # |
H020670-072623 |
| Submitted | July 26, 2023 |
| Est. Completion | Aug. 3, 2023 |
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Communications
From: Erin Marie Miller
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Michigan Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
1. All reports about COVID-19 prepared by the global consulting firm McKinsey & Company that were provided to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) between the dates of 5/1/2020 and 7/1/2020 related to long-term care facilities and/or nursing homes and/or COVID-19 regional hubs in Michigan.
2. All emails sent to, from, and/or between any of the following individuals and/or email addresses between the dates of 5/1/2020 and 7/1/2020:
- Any email address ending in " @mckinsey.com ";
- Gov. Gretchen Whitmer: WhitmerG1@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Whitmer);
- Mark Totten: TottenM1@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Mr. Totten);
- Erin Emerson: EmersonE@michigan.gov;
- Jay Fiedler: FiedlerJ@michigan.gov;
- Katherine Commey: CommeyK@michigan.gov;
- Sarah LyconCallo: lyoncallos@michigan.gov;
- Steven Schreier: SchreierS@michigan.gov;
- Miki Patterson: PattersonM8@michigan.gov;
- Jeffrey Duncan: DuncanJ11@michigan.gov;
- Rey Bouknight: BouknightR@michigan.gov;
- Joseph Coyle: CoyleJ@michigan.gov;
- Elizabeth Hertel: HertelE@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Hertel);
- Robert Gordon: GordonR3@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Mr. Gordon);
- Dana Nessel: dananessel@gmail.com, miag@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Nessel);
- Tricia Foster: FosterT13@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Foster);
- Joanna Huls: HulsJ1@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Huls).
Please make sure to include any attachments to those emails.
If it is not possible for your agency to conduct a search for emails originating from a specific domain, such as @mckinsey.com, please let me know and I can provide you with a specific list of McKinsey email addresses to search for instead.
For further clarity about the requested records:
Nursing home regional hubs were introduced by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in April 2020 as part of the State of Michigan's response to COVID-19. The hubs were intended to provide care for COVID-19 positive senior citizens, as reported in the Detroit News: https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2020/06/23/hubs-picked-care-covid-19-seniors-have-low-quality-ratings/3244493001/
McKinsey & Co. is a global management consulting firm whose work regarding various government responses to COVID-19, including vaccination efforts, have come under scrutiny recently in the U.S. (https://www.propublica.org/article/how-mckinsey-is-making-100-million-and-counting-advising-on-the-governments-bumbling-coronavirus-response) and in France (https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/22/business/france-mckinsey-consultants-covid-vaccine.html). The firm's government contracts were also the subject of a recent public records lawsuit in Tennessee (https://finance.yahoo.com/news/tennessee-sued-not-releasing-covid-221610057.html). McKinsey & Co. also recently came under scrutiny in the national press over potential conflicts of interest related to the firm's relationships with pharmaceutical companies and regulators (https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/13/business/mckinsey-purdue-fda-records.html).
When providing the records related to this request, please make sure to specifically certify that no other responsive documents related to this request exist.
The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.
In the event that there are fees, I am willing to pay up to $25 for the requested information. If the fee for this request exceeds that amount, please notify me for permission prior to initiating work on the request.
I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.
Please send all documents related to this request to this email address.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 5 business days, as the statute requires.
Sincerely,
Erin Marie Miller
From: Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
Dear Mrs. Miller,
Thank you for your interest in public records of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (hereinafter “Department”).
Records Requested: To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Michigan Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
1. All reports about COVID-19 prepared by the global consulting firm McKinsey & Company that were provided to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) between the dates of 5/1/2020 and 7/1/2020 related to long-term care facilities and/or nursing homes and/or COVID-19 regional hubs in Michigan.
2. All emails sent to, from, and/or between any of the following individuals and/or email addresses between the dates of 5/1/2020 and 7/1/2020:
- Any email address ending in " @mckinsey.com ";
- Gov. Gretchen Whitmer: WhitmerG1@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Whitmer);
- Mark Totten: TottenM1@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Mr. Totten);
- Erin Emerson: EmersonE@michigan.gov;
- Jay Fiedler: FiedlerJ@michigan.gov;
- Katherine Commey: CommeyK@michigan.gov;
- Sarah LyconCallo: lyoncallos@michigan.gov;
- Steven Schreier: SchreierS@michigan.gov;
- Miki Patterson: PattersonM8@michigan.gov;
- Jeffrey Duncan: DuncanJ11@michigan.gov;
- Rey Bouknight: BouknightR@michigan.gov;
- Joseph Coyle: CoyleJ@michigan.gov;
- Elizabeth Hertel: HertelE@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Hertel);
- Robert Gordon: GordonR3@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Mr. Gordon);
- Dana Nessel: dananessel@gmail.com, miag@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Nessel);
- Tricia Foster: FosterT13@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Foster);
- Joanna Huls: HulsJ1@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Huls).
Please make sure to include any attachments to those emails.
If it is not possible for your agency to conduct a search for emails originating from a specific domain, such as @mckinsey.com, please let me know and I can provide you with a specific list of McKinsey email addresses to search for instead.
For further clarity about the requested records:
Nursing home regional hubs were introduced by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in April 2020 as part of the State of Michigan's response to COVID-19. The hubs were intended to provide care for COVID-19 positive senior citizens, as reported in the Detroit News: https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2020/06/23/hubs-picked-care-covid-19-seniors-have-low-quality-ratings/3244493001/
McKinsey & Co. is a global management consulting firm whose work regarding various government responses to COVID-19, including vaccination efforts, have come under scrutiny recently in the U.S. (https://www.propublica.org/article/how-mckinsey-is-making-100-million-and-counting-advising-on-the-governments-bumbling-coronavirus-response) and in France (https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/22/business/france-mckinsey-consultants-covid-vaccine.html). The firm's government contracts were also the subject of a recent public records lawsuit in Tennessee (https://finance.yahoo.com/news/tennessee-sued-not-releasing-covid-221610057.html). McKinsey & Co. also recently came under scrutiny in the national press over potential conflicts of interest related to the firm's relationships with pharmaceutical companies and regulators (https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/13/business/mckinsey-purdue-fda-records.html).
When providing the records related to this request, please make sure to specifically certify that no other responsive documents related to this request exist.
The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.
In the event that there are fees, I am willing to pay up to $25 for the requested information. If the fee for this request exceeds that amount, please notify me for permission prior to initiating work on the request.
I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.
Please send all documents related to this request to this email address.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 5 business days, as the statute requires.
Sincerely,
Erin Marie Miller
Upload documents directly: https://www.muckrock.com/
Your request has been assigned the following tracking number: H020670-072623. Your request has a legally received date of July 27, 2023. You will receive a response by the Department by August 03, 2023. Unfortunately, we are unable to expedite requests and the time permitted for response by the Department may be extended beyond August 03, 2023 by ten (10) business days.
In accordance with the Michigan Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), MCL 15.231 et seq, the Department provides copies of existing non-exempt records. Records which are exempt from disclosure under state or federal law will not be provided, or records may be redacted to separate exempt information. The FOIA does not require the Department to create new records or answer queries.
You can monitor the progress of your request at the MDHHS Public Records Center and you will receive an email when your request has been completed.
Regards,
Bureau of Legal Affairs,
Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
From: Erin Marie Miller
I apologize for the confusion on this request. Instead, the language should have read as follows (the second portion of the request has been updated for clarification):
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Michigan Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
1. All reports about COVID-19 prepared by the global consulting firm McKinsey & Company that were provided to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) between the dates of 5/1/2020 and 7/1/2020 related to long-term care facilities and/or nursing homes and/or COVID-19 regional hubs in Michigan.
2. All emails sent to, from, and/or between any email address ending in " @mckinsey.com " and any of the following individuals and/or email addresses between the dates of 5/1/2020 and 7/1/2020:
- Gov. Gretchen Whitmer: WhitmerG1@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Whitmer);
- Mark Totten: TottenM1@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Mr. Totten);
- Erin Emerson: EmersonE@michigan.gov;
- Jay Fiedler: FiedlerJ@michigan.gov;
- Katherine Commey: CommeyK@michigan.gov;
- Sarah LyconCallo: lyoncallos@michigan.gov;
- Steven Schreier: SchreierS@michigan.gov;
- Miki Patterson: PattersonM8@michigan.gov;
- Jeffrey Duncan: DuncanJ11@michigan.gov;
- Rey Bouknight: BouknightR@michigan.gov;
- Joseph Coyle: CoyleJ@michigan.gov;
- Elizabeth Hertel: HertelE@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Hertel);
- Robert Gordon: GordonR3@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Mr. Gordon);
- Dana Nessel: dananessel@gmail.com, miag@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Nessel);
- Tricia Foster: FosterT13@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Foster);
- Joanna Huls: HulsJ1@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Huls).
Please make sure to include any attachments to those emails.
If it is not possible for your agency to conduct a search for emails originating from a specific domain, such as @mckinsey.com, please let me know and I can provide you with a specific list of McKinsey email addresses to search for instead.
For further clarity about the requested records:
Nursing home regional hubs were introduced by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in April 2020 as part of the State of Michigan's response to COVID-19. The hubs were intended to provide care for COVID-19 positive senior citizens, as reported in the Detroit News: https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2020/06/23/hubs-picked-care-covid-19-seniors-have-low-quality-ratings/3244493001/
McKinsey & Co. is a global management consulting firm whose work regarding various government responses to COVID-19, including vaccination efforts, have come under scrutiny recently in the U.S. (https://www.propublica.org/article/how-mckinsey-is-making-100-million-and-counting-advising-on-the-governments-bumbling-coronavirus-response) and in France (https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/22/business/france-mckinsey-consultants-covid-vaccine.html). The firm's government contracts were also the subject of a recent public records lawsuit in Tennessee (https://finance.yahoo.com/news/tennessee-sued-not-releasing-covid-221610057.html). McKinsey & Co. also recently came under scrutiny in the national press over potential conflicts of interest related to the firm's relationships with pharmaceutical companies and regulators (https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/13/business/mckinsey-purdue-fda-records.html).
When providing the records related to this request, please make sure to specifically certify that no other responsive documents related to this request exist.
The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.
In the event that there are fees, I am willing to pay up to $25 for the requested information. If the fee for this request exceeds that amount, please notify me for permission prior to initiating work on the request.
I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.
Please send all documents related to this request to this email address.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 5 business days, as the statute requires.
Sincerely,
Erin Marie Miller
From: Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
Hi Ms. Miller,
I want to clarify that the Department does not have access to the email accounts of individuals who are not MDHHS employees such as:
Gretchen Whitmer
Mark Totten
Dana Nessel
Tricia Foster
Joanne Huls
Any emails they have directly with Mckinsey will only be collected in an email search if any of the named MDHHS employees were copied on the email.
Thanks,
Ruth O'Connor
MDHHS
From: Erin Marie Miller
Hi Ruth,
Thank you for clarifying. That's totally understandable.
- Erin
From: Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
The search resulted in 4,569 emails. I have been informed #1 of your request will also be in the emails.
From: Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
RE: Public Records Request, Reference # H020670-072623
Dear Mrs. Miller,
This notice is issued in response to your request, legally received by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (Department) on July 27, 2023, requesting information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), MCL 15.231 et seq.
Your request is granted as to existing nonexempt records.
The Department has estimated the cost for searching, retrieval, and review of the requested records and separation of exempt and nonexempt information. The estimated cost of your FOIA request as well as the required deposit is stated in the invoice located in the MDHHS Public Records Center, where you may pay your invoice and deposit online. Upon payment of the deposit the Department will process your request. The required deposit must be received within 48 days from the date of this communication; otherwise, your request will be considered abandoned.
The Department’s best effort estimate for time to complete your request is thirty business days from the date the deposit is received. Once your FOIA request has been processed the Department will send you a final invoice, which may be more or less than the estimate. Payment must be received in full before records will be provided.
The Department’s FOIA policies and procedures are available at Policies and Procedures.
Sincerely,
Ruth O'Connor
Bureau of Legal Affairs
From: Erin Marie Miller
Hi Ruth,
Following up on your previous message, as well as the $3196.56 invoice MDHHS sent me for this request, I have a couple of questions.
1. Can you please confirm that this invoice/response is related to the updated request language that I sent via a portal message on 7/28/2023, which attempted to correct the somewhat confusing language of the original request?
2. Can you explain how it's possible that this request, which seeks only two months of emails, generated 4,569 responsive documents -- when MDHHS's response to a very similar request last year generated almost the same number of emails over eight months (between 3/1/2020 and 10/31/2020, which were provided to me, at no fee, under request H016452-082322, currently in litigation)? It just seems like something isn't quite right with the number of responsive documents that are being cited here, considering that some of the people on this list are the same ones included in the eight months of communications that was provided to me under that previous similar request.
3. Can you please let me know what the updated search cost would be to narrow my request, as described below:
All emails sent to, from, and/or between any email address ending in " @mckinsey.com " and any of the following individuals and/or email addresses between the dates of 5/1/2020 and 6/15/2020 (including all attachments) that mention the word "hub" AND/OR "hubs" (the search term should not be case-sensitive):
- Erin Emerson: EmersonE@michigan.gov;
- Jay Fiedler: FiedlerJ@michigan.gov;
- Katherine Commey: CommeyK@michigan.gov;
- Sarah LyconCallo: lyoncallos@michigan.gov;
- Elizabeth Hertel: HertelE@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Hertel);
- Robert Gordon: GordonR3@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Mr. Gordon);
Please let me know.
Thanks,
Erin
From: Erin Marie Miller
Hi Ruth,
It appears someone at MDHHS opened a new FOIA request under my name and personal email address using the narrowed language I specified in my last message to you.
Please change that email address to THIS MuckRock email address immediately.
MDHHS does NOT have permission to file new FOIA requests under my name or any email address other than the email addresses from which I file them myself.
I request public records via MuckRock so that they will be made available to the public via MuckRock's public records database. I believe you are aware of that.
Please let staff at MDHHS know that, in the future, even if the email addresses associated with my FOIA requests are changed by government officials, I will still make sure the public records are included on MuckRock's website by forwarding the records to MuckRock staff.
- Erin
From: Erin Marie Miller
Ruth,
Following up on my previous message to you, due to the lack of response from MDHHS.
In light of the $3196.56 invoice MDHHS sent me for this request, I have a couple of questions:
1. Can you please confirm that this invoice/response is related to the updated request language that I sent via a portal message on 7/28/2023, which attempted to correct the somewhat confusing language of the original request?
2. Can you explain how it's possible that this request, which seeks only two months of emails, generated 4,569 responsive documents -- when MDHHS's response to a very similar request last year generated almost the same number of emails over eight months (between 3/1/2020 and 10/31/2020, which were provided to me, at no fee, under request H016452-082322, currently in litigation)? It just seems like something isn't quite right with the number of responsive documents that are being cited here, considering that some of the people on this list are the same ones included in the eight months of communications that was provided to me under that previous similar request.
3. Can you please let me know what the updated search cost would be to narrow my request, as described below:
All emails sent to, from, and/or between any email address ending in " @mckinsey.com " and any of the following individuals and/or email addresses between the dates of 5/1/2020 and 6/15/2020 (including all attachments) that mention the word "hub" AND/OR "hubs" (the search term should not be case-sensitive):
- Erin Emerson: EmersonE@michigan.gov;
- Jay Fiedler: FiedlerJ@michigan.gov;
- Katherine Commey: CommeyK@michigan.gov;
- Sarah LyconCallo: lyoncallos@michigan.gov;
- Elizabeth Hertel: HertelE@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Ms. Hertel);
- Robert Gordon: GordonR3@michigan.gov (or any other known email account belonging to Mr. Gordon);
Please let me know.
Thanks,
Erin
From: Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
Hi Erin,
Yes, that is the fee for this request. I will check the number of emails again with DTMB who does the actual email search but this is the number they gave me. It's possible they gave me the number before they ran the de-duplication process. I will check on that.
The reason you received the emails last year at no cost was we had already processed those emails for another requestor who had paid the fee. The request that was paid for was similar to your request but not exactly the same. I believe the timeframe was narrower. It states in the original notice you were receiving the emails at no cost because they were for another request that had been paid for.
I will send you a new estimate for you narrowed request.
Sincerely,
Ruth O'Connor
MDHHS
From: Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
Hi Erin,
Your narrowed request came back with 222 emails. I will waive the fee process these emails.
Thanks,
Ruth O'Connor
MDHHS
From: Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
RE: Public Records Request, Reference # H020670-072623. Dear Mrs. Miller,
This notice is issued in response to your request, legally received by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (Department) on July 27, 2023, requesting information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), MCL 15.231 et seq.
Your request is partially granted and partially denied. As to the granted portion, the Department has identified and included the responsive information falling within the scope of your request. To the best of the Department’s knowledge, information, and belief, these are all the records in the possession of the Department falling within the scope of your request. The Department has waived the fee for processing this request. ecords of a public body's security measures, including security plans, security codes and combinations, passwords, passes, keys, and security procedures are exempt per MCL 15.243 §13(1)(u). Conference call passcodes have been redacted.
As to the denial, medical, counseling, or psychological records are exempt from disclosure under the FOIA per MCL 15.243 (1)(l). Some of the spreadsheets contained patient names that were removed. R
As to the denied portion, the Department is obligated to inform you that under MCL 15.240 the following remedies are available:
1. Appeal this decision in writing to the Legal Affairs Administration, Department of Health and Human Services, Suite 207, PO Box 30037, Lansing, MI 48909. The writing must specifically state the word “appeal” and must identify the reason or reasons you believe the denial should be reversed. The Department must respond to your appeal within ten days of receipt. Under unusual circumstances, the time for response to your appeal may be extended by ten business days.
2. File an action in the appropriate court within 180 days after the date of the final determination to deny the request. If you prevail in such an action, the court is to award reasonable attorney fees, costs, disbursements, and possible damages.
The Department’s FOIA policies and procedures are available at Policies and Procedures.
Sincerely,
Ruth O'Connor
Bureau of Legal Affairs
