Michigan requires agricultural employers to perform COVID-19 testing by Aug. 24

In an email disseminated on Aug. 6, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) released a memorandum, "MDHHS Agricultural Employer Testing Public Health Order Guidance,” and is requiring COVID-19 testing for:

• Migrant housing camp operators
• Agricultural employers with over 20 employees on-site at a time (or per shift)

According to the memorandum, facilities must complete baseline testing and begin implementing ongoing testing as soon as practicable and no later than Aug. 24. Facilities have several options for how to do so:

• Including creating a facility-managed testing program
• Requesting state assistance
• Utilizing testing resources in the general community

You must complete a plan by Aug. 10 for how to conduct testing in compliance with this guidance and make it available to MDHHS, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development or the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration upon request.

Read the MDHHS Agricultural Employer Testing Guidance that was released on Aug. 3 to learn more about the requirements. You might also need these resources:

Templates for testing assistance and testing plan:

• Testing assistance request template
• Testing plan template: agricultural employers and migrant housing

Testing Resources:

MDHHS maintains a list of laboratories with COVID-19 testing capabilities and the capacity to accept samples from new medical providers or congregate care facilities. Some west Michigan greenhouse growers are using:

• Arctic Medical Labs, 1-866-964-5128 in Grand Rapids
• Optimed Health Partners, 269-250-8689, SW Michigan

*This content is all provided by the State of Michigan (Michigan Dept. of Health and Human Services)