DETROIT – Newly released data from the Center for Disease Control shows an increase in total deaths this year in states hard hit by COVID-19, including Michigan. Data shows in Michigan, the partial death count is 121 percent of the count in a normal year, the equivalent of nearly 2,000 more deaths. (Find the latest Michigan COVID-19 data here)The New York Times found in New Jersey, deaths have been 172 percent of the normal — more than 5,000 additional deaths, compared with an average count from the past five years. The CDC data is partial and state’s are reporting COVID-19 deaths much quicker than at the federal level. Michigan, like many other states, is reviewing death certificates and matching test results, which has resulted in a retroactive increase in COVID-19 deaths.