Fears of another COVID surge loom
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, during a press call in late March warned of “impending doom” if the latest spike in coronavirus cases continues.
“We have so much to look forward to, so much promise and potential of where we are and so much reason for hope,” Walensky said. “But right now I’m scared.”
Michigan is one of several states fueling that sense of dread. COVID-19 cases there are surging more than in any state. The sevenday average, 5,061, has grown sixfold over nearly six weeks. As of April 1, hospitals had about 2,500 adult patients with confirmed cases.
While the latest round of patients admitted with COVID-19 tend to be less severe and don’t require as many critical care services as did patients during previous surges, Jim Lee, vice president of data policy and analytics at the Michigan Health & Hospital Association, noted that there is still a toll on resources, telling reporters in late March, “We don’t want these individuals showing up at our hospitals, especially for something that we know can be prevented by … wearing a mask, social distancing.”
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on March 29 urged providers not to hold back in vaccinating Michigan residents of any age, given the spike in cases.
“We are encouraging providers of the vaccine to fill every slot even if they don’t have someone in the priority groups right now,” she told
Crain’s Detroit Business.