DETROIT – Several Metro Detroit counties have been upgraded to a “high” COVID-19 risk category and are being urged to practice mask wearing in public by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
As of Thursday, May 12, the CDC has identified the following Metro Detroit counties as having high community COVID transmission: Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, St. Clair, Washtenaw and Wayne counties.
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A number of other Michigan counties -- primarily in the northern Lower Peninsula and eastern corner of the Upper Peninsula, save for Calhoun County -- are also experiencing higher COVID spread, according to the CDC. On Monday, May 9, Grand Traverse County was the only Michigan county labeled as having a “high” COVID risk.
The CDC recommends that in communities with high virus spread, people should wear face masks indoors when in public, and while taking public transportation.
See here: Interactive map: COVID community levels and case rates by Michigan county
Several Michigan counties all throughout the state are experiencing “medium” COVID-19 spread. People in counties with medium community transmission are encouraged to monitor themselves for symptoms, and test if symptoms arise. People are also encouraged to wear a mask on public transportation, and/or as a precaution when out in public.
Click here to see the CDC’s county data for the entire country.
COVID case counts have been ticking up in recent weeks, following weeks of decreased spread that came after a monthslong surge. The omicron COVID variant and its subvariants appear to be the dominant mutations that are driving the spread.
Michigan health officials reported last month that the state is expected to continue to see a rise in cases, but deaths and hospitalizations are not expected to surge like they did during the last wave.
On Wednesday, May 13, Michigan health officials reported 27,705 new COVID-19 cases and 76 virus-related deaths over a seven-day period. Case counts have been rising by a few thousand each week since April 13.
Weekly Michigan COVID case counts since April 13:
- April 13: 7,725 new cases
- April 20: 10,474 new cases
- April 27: 14,482 new cases
- May 4: 18,945 new cases
- May 11: 27,705 new cases
You can find more Michigan COVID data here from MDHHS.
As of this week, more than one million Americans have died from COVID-19 since the pandemic began.
Related: The AP Interview: US ‘vulnerable’ to COVID without new shots