Birmingham, AL has a thriving health care district that is keeping their economy moving despite a similar loss of industrial jobs that has been Detroit's fate.

The University of Alabama complex which includes highly ranked UAB Hospital and research facilities is the main single employer in that area.

The expansion of Detroit's main hospitals in the Midtown area will improve the local economy and help diversify the economy as manufacturing shrinks further in the future.

The days of high-paying factory jobs are ending. Manufacturing will continue to employ people in MI and the US but it will no longer sustain the economies of most Midwest and Northeast metro areas. They will need to replace the industrial jobs that are gone with jobs in health care, IT, technology, tourism, finance, etc.