A physician facing involuntary manslaughter and other charges linked to the Flint, Mich., water crisis has received the highest individual award from two Michigan public health groups, according to MLive.com.
Eden Wells, MD, chief medical executive for the state, received the Michigan Association for Local Public Health and Michigan Public Health Association's Roy R. Manty Distinguished Service Award, according to Michigan's Department of Health and Human Services.
The award is the highest individual honor the local public health community gives, according to the awarding organizations.
Dr. Wells faces charges of involuntary manslaughter, willful neglect of duty, misconduct in office and lying to a peace officer. A judge has not scheduled a date to announce his decision on the charges.
Prosecutors claim Dr. Wells showed gross negligence in her role as the state's top physician, allowing the death of a man who is one of at least 12 people who died due to Legionnaires' disease outbreaks during the Flint water crisis.
Dr. Wells' supporters say she is a hero of the water crisis and was wrongly charged by the attorney general.
Annette Mercatante, MD, president of the Michigan Association for Local Public Health, said Dr. Wells has consistently provided "timely (usually immediate), intelligent, expert, reliable and compassionate support for the entire array of expected and unexpected community health issues that arise daily in our state."