According to an autopsy report released Friday, a 2-month-old baby thought to have died from coronavirus actually died of complications from a birth defect.
The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner said the baby, from the Upper Peninsula, was born with gastroschisis -- a condition where his intestines are located outside the body. The baby tested positive for COVID-19 a few days before his death and hospital staff reported the virus had contributed to his passing.
Sept. 18, 2020: Michigan coronavirus (COVID-19) cases up to 115,387; Death toll now at 6,638
The final autopsy report lists gastroschisis as the immediate cause of death.
Officials from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services said Wednesday that a 2-month-old baby in Michigan had died from COVID-19.
When reached for a comment, a spokesperson said “We remain unable to provide any additional details about the 2-month-old who was mentioned at the press conference -- and that includes being unable to confirm or deny that any specific baby is the baby that was referenced.”
On Friday, MDHHS released a statement explaining its standards for deaths linked to COVID-19:
"Following national standards, MDHHS considers a death to be a COVID-19-associated death if the death is due to natural causes, there is a positive COVID-19 test, and one of the following is true:
- The death is within 30 days of onset of COVID-19.
- If the death is more than 30 days from onset, the certifying physician identifies COVID-19 as a contributing factor to death.
MDHHS relies on the judgment of treating physicians in determining whether a death is associated with COVID-19."