Detroit City Wire

Michigan State Senator Michael Webber has called on the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) to restore public data on recipient rights complaints that was recently removed from the department’s website. In a letter sent Monday to MDHHS Director Elizabeth Hertel, Webber criticized the department’s decision to delete two years of records, including information related to the Hawthorn Center, the former state psychiatric hospital for minors.

“Director Hertel cannot continue to operate MDHHS under a cloak of secrecy by simply hiding data that confirms her department’s ongoing record of failure,” said Webber, R-Rochester Hills. “Families must be able to trust the systems meant to protect their loved ones. Yet the more we learn, the worse it gets — vulnerable patients are being harmed under her watch.”

The removal of these records occurred shortly after news reporters inquired about the data. Their questions followed a recent report from the Office of the Auditor General, which highlighted significant problems within the Office of Recipient Rights, an agency within MDHHS responsible for protecting public mental health service recipients.

Webber’s letter stated, “The removal of this data is deeply concerning, especially given that a recent audit found the figures may understate the true number of verified incidents because of poor documentation.”

In response to findings from the audit, Webber has also called for legislative oversight hearings. The audit found that complaints about recipient rights were often not addressed, video surveillance equipment in state psychiatric hospitals was frequently missing or malfunctioning, and MDHHS did not properly investigate serious allegations in a timely manner.