State proposes smaller psychiatric hospital in Thumb region

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's administration is recommending that the state renovate a psychiatric hospital or build a new one in Michigan's Thumb region, though one that would be smaller than planned by her predecessor.

The state Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday proposed having an 84-bed facility in Caro. It now has capacity for 150 beds and was supposed to become a 200-bed hospital through new construction.

Whitmer had delayed construction of the new $115 million hospital, citing staffing shortages months after the groundbreaking. Now her administration wants legislative approval to have a smaller Caro hospital, and to shift 60 beds to other state hospitals closer to major population centers.

A union says it's thrilled the hospital would remain operational but is concerned about decreasing the number of beds.