To the Ann Arbor City Council, Mayor, and Human Rights Commission, with a copy to the news media:

I am still the only candidate for Ann Arbor City Council, 4th Ward, who is on the ballot. I am also the closest thing to representation which Ward 4 now has, as of the March 16th City Council meeting. No other candidate or sitting representative even showed up to that City Council meeting — only I attended, and I spoke as well, demanding that field hospitals be prepared before our existing hospitals are swamped with COVID-19 cases.

Today, I still urge the Ann Arbor City Council to prepare field hospitals before our existing hospitals are overwhelmed with COVID-19 victims.
I have also asked Washtenaw County Commission members why they can’t do the same.

In no case has any Ann Arbor City Councilmember, or any Washtenaw County Commission member, agreed to initiate the preparation of field hospitals. None of them have even agreed to advocate for that urgent action.

They need to get busy now, filing a Letter of Intent for an emergency Certificate of Need with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Certificate of Need Commission.

Unfortunately, since that Commission’s next scheduled meeting is not until June 18, 2020, our local authorities will also have to seek emergency approval directly from MDHHS to prepare a field hospital in Ann Arbor, unless they have a better plan, such as convincing the Governor to seek help from the U.S. Army:

In race against coronavirus spread, Cuomo asks feds to build eight hospitals in downstate region

Military field hospitals on way to state to meet projected need for hospital beds

In Madrid, the government is preparing a field hospital for 5,500 patients right now: https://www.thelocal.es/20200322/madrid-turns-conference-centre-into-big-field-hospital

And in Stockholm now: https://www.thelocal.se/20200322/a-field-hospital-will-be-built-in-stockholm-to-prepare-for-more-coronavirus-cases

In other words, the City Council needs to act now to get us a field hospital, before our existing hospitals are overwhelmed.

Mozhgan Savabieasfahani, PhD
Candidate for City Council, 4th Ward.
March 22, 2020

“Mozhgan Savabieasfahani, an environmental toxicologist who is running for council, urged city officials to look to lessons learned in other countries and set up field hospitals now.”

* See full coverage in MLive, March 17, 2020, at https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2020/03/heres-what-ann-arbors-state-of-emergency-declaration-means-for-the-city.html 

Ann Arbor, Michigan: US sanctions are killing Iranians during a global pandemic. Listen to the outcry demanding an immediate stop to all sanctions on Iran to protect lives. See the articles on the subject which have been released in recent days; some are referenced below.
In Ann Arbor, we can easily do our part to save 80 million Iranians from sanctions-induced death during this pandemic. Ann Arbor City Council must pass this simple humanitarian resolution: “We demand that all sanctions against Iran be removed immediately, to save millions of Iranian lives.”
That 16-word resolution won’t cost you a thing, and it will save many lives.
See these recent articles:
” ‘Literally Weaponizing Coronavirus’: Despite One of World’s Worst Outbreaks of Deadly Virus, US Hits Iran With ‘Brutal’ New Sanctions”https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/03/18/literally-weaponizing-coronavirus-despite-one-worlds-worst-outbreaks-deadly-virus-us 

Coronavirus: Ilhan Omar calls for lifting of sanctions on Iran amid outbreak: With more than 11,000 reported cases, the Islamic Republic is one of the worst affected by Covid-19 outside of China
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/coronavirus-ilhan-omar-calls-lifting-Trump-sanctions-iran  
 “U.S. Sanctions on Iran Are Increasing Coronavirus Deaths. They Need to Be Stopped Now. The measures—imposed by Trump with bipartisan complicity—curtail desperately needed medical supplies.”
https://inthesetimes.com/article/22387/iran-sanctions-coronavirus-deaths-democrats-trump-nuclear-deal-medicine

“The Coronavirus Is Killing Iranians. So Are Trump’s Brutal Sanctions.”
https://theintercept.com/2020/03/17/coronavirus-iran-sanctions/  

“”Amid the COVID-19 crisis, the Trump administration has slapped new sanctions on Iran”https://mondoweiss.net/2020/03/amidst-the-covid-19-crisis-the-trump-administration-has-slapped-new-sanctions-on-iran/ 
— That last article quotes Senator Bernie Sanders saying “Iran is facing a catastrophic toll from the coronavirus pandemic. U.S. sanctions should not be contributing to this humanitarian disaster. As a caring nation, we must lift any sanctions hurting Iran’s ability to address this crisis, including financial sanctions.”  

As the only candidate on the ballot for a 4th Ward seat on the Ann Arbor City Council, I am telling the City Council to approve this resolution as quickly as possible:
“We demand that all sanctions against Iran be removed immediately, to save millions of Iranian lives.”
In case you have forgotten that Iranians are human beings, take a look at the attached photos from Iran.   
Thank you,

Mozhgan Savabieasfahani, PhD, Candidate for Ann Arbor City Council, Ward 4.VoteForTheDoctor.com

March 18, 2020
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/03/11/scientist-who-exposed-health-impacts-burn-pits-iraq-awarded-rachel-carson-prize