DETROIT – The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in Michigan has risen to 764,519 as of Wednesday, including 16,621 deaths, state officials report.
Wednesday’s update includes a total of 7,955 new cases and 35 additional deaths. On Tuesday, the state reported 756,564 total cases and 16,586 deaths.
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Testing has been steady around 35,000 diagnostic tests reported per day on average, with the 7-day positive rate above 15% as of Tuesday, near the highest we’ve ever recorded. Hospitalizations have increased over the last several weeks, now near the highest point of the pandemic.
More: 16 things to know from recent talk about Michigan COVID restrictions, workplace rules, vaccines
Michigan continues to lead the nation in new COVID-19 cases. The state’s 7-day moving average for daily cases was 7,014 on Tuesday -- the highest since November. The 7-day death average was 43 on Tuesday, slightly higher than the last two weeks. The state’s fatality rate is 2.2%. The state also reports “active cases,” which were listed at 154,000 on Tuesday. More than 587,000 have recovered in Michigan.
Michigan has reported more than 5.3 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine administered as of Tuesday, with 41.9% of residents having received at least one dose.
More: CDC: Michigan’s response to rising COVID cases should be to ‘shut things down’
According to Johns Hopkins University, more than 31 million cases have been reported in the U.S., with more than 562,000 deaths reported from the virus.
Worldwide, more than 136 million people have been confirmed infected and more than 2.9 million have died. More than 77 million have recovered, according to Johns Hopkins University. The true numbers are certainly much higher, because of limited testing, different ways nations count the dead and deliberate under-reporting by some governments.
Michigan COVID-19 vaccinations: How to find appointments, info on phases
VIEW: Tracking Michigan COVID-19 vaccine doses 💉
VIEW: Tracking coronavirus cases, outbreaks in Michigan schools
CDC: Michigan’s response to rising COVID cases should be to ‘shut things down’
The director of the CDC said the answer to Michigan’s alarming rise in COVID-19 cases isn’t to “vaccinate our way out” of it, but to “shut things down” like the state did last spring and summer.
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, spoke Monday about the COVID-19 situation in Michigan.
On Friday, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called Michigan a “COVID hotspot” and called on the federal government to surge additional vaccines here in response to rising case numbers.
Voluntary COVID restrictions: Whitmer, MDHHS ask Michiganders for 2-week pause
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the state health department are asking residents to follow certain voluntary COVID-19 restrictions, such as avoiding indoor dining, suspending sports and returning to remote learning.
On Friday, Whitmer and Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, chief medical executive of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, spoke about the alarming COVID-19 trends in Michigan.
“I am quite concerned with what we are seeing in our data,” Khaldun said “We are on track to potentially see a surge in cases that’s even greater than the one we saw in the fall.”
Detroit launches 8 neighborhood COVID vaccine sites
The city of Detroit is launching eight neighborhood COVID-19 vaccination sites, adding to an expansion at TCF Center, to combat surging cases and hospitalizations in the city.
Detroit’s vaccination rate, 21% as of Monday, is far below neighboring areas and overall state average, which is 35%. The city is expanding options for residents with an urgent message: Get vaccinated.
Next week, the city will be offering eight additional locations throughout the week, in addition to its Community Saturdays and other outreach programs, to provide Detroiters with the opportunity to get vaccinated in a convenient and familiar location close to home.
Michigan: All adults eligible for COVID vaccine April 5
All Michigan residents age 16 and up became eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine on April 5, nearly a month before the May 1 date pledged by President Joe Biden.
People age 16 to 49 with certain medical conditions or disabilities will qualify starting March 22, when 50- to 64-year-olds can begin getting shots under a previous announcement. Two days later, March 24, a federally selected regional mass vaccination site will open at Detroit’s Ford Field to administer an additional 6,000 doses a day for two months.
MORE: Michigan’s updated COVID-19 vaccination schedule: Who is eligible and when
Officials say contagious COVID variant from Brazil found in Michigan as cases surge
The COVID-19 variant detected in Brazil has been identified in Bay County. That variant is known as the P1 strain and it is more contagious and more than 50% able to reinfect.
The person infected in Bay County and the people they’ve been in contact with will need to quarantine for 14 days. It’s unclear what effect, if any, it will have on those, including seniors, who have already been vaccinated as there isn’t enough research to know exactly.
Federal officials increasing COVID-19 vaccine doses available for Michigan
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer released a statement Tuesday after White House officials announced that there will increase COVID-19 vaccine doses available for Michigan starting next week.
According to a press release, next week’s shipment will increase by 66,020 bringing the total number of doses to 620,040 -- a weekly record for the state. Officials said the allocation includes 147,800 doses of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
This comes after Whitmer recently requested for more vaccines as the state is seeing a rise in COVID numbers.
CDC: Michigan leads country in new cases of COVID per population
The CDC said that Michigan is leading the country in new cases of COVID-19 per population.
On Tuesday, officials reported 5,177 new COVID cases and 48 additional deaths, including 20 from a Vital Records review. On Monday, the state reported 660,771 total cases and 16,034 deaths.
Local 4′s Dr. Frank McGeorge said he’s seen a very clear increase in COVID patients at the hospital where he works.
“Many of them need to be hospitalized. I would honestly say, this feels worse to me here in Southeast Michigan than it was during the wave that started in November. Now, the most concerning trend is the number of middle-aged people with severe COVID,” McGeorge said.
Michigan confirms first case of South African COVID variant in Jackson County
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services announced that the first case of the COVID-19 variant B.1.351 has been identified in a child in Jackson County.
The health department did not say how the boy was infected but a case investigation is underway to determine close contacts and if there are additional cases associated.
This new variant was originally detected in South Africa in October 2020 and shares some mutations with the B117 variant. The first case of the B117 variant -- originally detected in the United Kingdom -- was identified in Washtenaw County.
Michigan COVID-19 daily reported cases since March 15:
- March 15 -- 1,572 new cases
- March 16 -- 2,048 new cases
- March 17 -- 3,164 new cases
- March 18 -- 2,629 new cases
- March 19 -- 3,730 new cases
- March 20 -- 2,660 new cases
- March 21 -- 2,400 new cases
- March 22 -- 2,401 new cases
- March 23 -- 3,579 new cases
- March 24 -- 4,454 new cases
- March 25 -- 5,224 new cases
- March 26 -- 5,030 new cases
- March 27 -- 4,670 new cases
- March 28 -- 4,101 new cases
- March 29 -- 4,101 new cases
- March 30 -- 5,177 new cases
- March 31 -- 6,311 new cases
- April 1 -- 6,036 new cases
- April 2 -- 5,498 new cases
- April 3 -- 8,413 new cases
- April 4 -- 5,146 new cases
- April 5 -- 5,147 new cases
- April 6 -- 4,964 new cases
- April 7 -- 8,015 new cases
- April 8 -- 7,819 new cases
- April 9 -- 7,834 new cases
- April 10 -- 6,892 new cases
- April 11 -- 4,837 new cases
- April 12 -- 4,837 new cases
- April 13 -- 8,867 new cases
- April 14 -- 7,955 new cases
Michigan COVID-19 daily reported deaths since March 15:
- March 15 -- 5 new deaths
- March 16 -- 27 new deaths (6 from vital records)
- March 17 -- 0 new deaths
- March 18 -- 25 new deaths (24 from vital records)
- March 19 -- 15 new deaths
- March 20 -- 47 new deaths -- (39 from vital records)
- March 21 -- 3 new deaths
- March 22 -- 3 new deaths
- March 23 -- 16 new deaths (8 from vital records)
- March 24 -- 16 new deaths
- March 25 -- 49 new deaths (30 from vital records)
- March 26 -- 20 new deaths
- March 27 -- 22 new deaths
- March 28 -- 4 new deaths
- March 29 -- 4 new deaths
- March 30 -- 48 new deaths (20 from vital records)
- March 31 -- 10 new deaths
- April 1 -- 49 new deaths (33 from vital records)
- April 2 -- 20 new deaths
- April 3 -- 57 new deaths (51 from vital records)
- April 4 -- 11 new deaths
- April 5 -- 10 new deaths
- April 6 -- 58 new deaths (16 from vital records)
- April 7 -- 30 new deaths
- April 8 -- 73 new deaths (43 from vital records)
- April 9 -- 26 new deaths
- April 10 -- 74 new deaths (57 from vital records)
- April 11 -- 6 new deaths
- April 12 -- 6 new deaths
- April 13 -- 74 new deaths (37 from vital records)
- April 14 -- 35 new deaths
Coronavirus resources:
- View more: Michigan COVID-19 data 📊📈
- Question about coronavirus? Ask Dr. McGeorge here.
- More: Return to School updates
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