State sees over 650 new virus cases
Michigan had yet another day with more than 600 confirmed cases of COVID-19 Saturday, with the weekly trend showing numbers the state hadn’t seen since May.
Testing showed 653 new cases in the state, bringing the total to 68,948.
An additional 22 coronavirus-related deaths were reported Saturday, bringing Michigan’s total to 6,067.
With 7,422 probable cases and probable coronavirus-related deaths, the state’s totals are now at 76,370 cases and 6,313 deaths.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services made an announcement Saturday urging parents to get children caught up on their vaccines as soon as possible, after pandemic scares caused many doctor visits to be cancelled earlier in the year.
“Because of the pandemic, it is especially important to ensure everyone is protected against vaccinepreventable diseases,” the department wrote.
According to the Michigan Care Improvement Registry data, only 53.1 percent of children aged 19-35 months of age were fully immunized with the recommended vaccines.
An Associated Press report showed deaths from heart disease, stroke, diabetes and other ailments have increased, possibly due to fear of going to a medical facility.
According to a study, there were 87,000 “excess deaths” — deaths above the expected rate — during the months of March and April 2020. But only two-thirds of those deaths were attributed to COVID-19.
Michigan is ranked 13th in the nation for total confirmed coronavirus infections, with New York, California, Florida and Texas in the top four.
In terms of cases per million residents, Michigan is 31st in the nation, with 7,789 cases per million. New York and New Jersey are the top two, with more than 20,000 cases per million residents.
Globally, there have been 12,576,457 confirmed cases with 561,879 deaths.
The United States still has the highest number of cases, with 3,215,861 cases and 134,430 deaths. The U. S. has had 9,900 confirmed cases per million residents. The next-closest country, Brazil, has seen 8,753 cases per million residents.
Cases by county
Oakland County again led the state Saturday with the most new cases, adding another 74 for a total of 9,479. The county saw six additional deaths, for a total of 66. The county remained at 3,163 probable cases and 42 probable COVID-related deaths.
Macomb County showed no growth from the previous day, remaining at 7,490.
Wayne County, excluding Detroit, added another 57 cases to reach 10,934.
Detroit saw 20 new cases, now at 11,898.
Nearby Washtenaw County saw no new cases from the previous day.
In Mid-Michigan, Isabella County saw yet another six cases, now at 134 cases with 24 more listed as probable. Gratiot County and Clare County saw no increases in cases or deaths, neither confirmed nor probable.
In the Lansing area, Ingham County saw another 21 cases, now at 999.
In Western Michigan, Kent County added 38 new cases, a slight increase from the previous day, now at 4,495. Ottawa County added another 10 to hit 972, while Kalamazoo County saw an additional five cases to reach 1,017.