MARQUETTE — The Marquette County Health Department announced on Thursday that through contact tracing it learned of a potential public COVID-19 exposure site at the Canale-Tonella Funeral Home.

The funeral home is located at 526 N. Third St. in Marquette.

MCHD recommends anyone who visited the funeral home from 3 to 7 p.m. Dec. 30 monitor themselves for COVID-19 symptoms and contact their medical providers if they become symptomatic.

Another community exposure occurred at St. Peter Cathedral, 311 W. Baraga Ave., Marquette. MCHD recommends anyone who visited the cathedral from 1 to 3 p.m. Dec. 31 monitor themselves for symptoms and contact their medical providers if they become symptomatic.

Testing information can be found at www.mqthealth.org.

UPHS Bell continues visitor restrictions

UP Health System-Bell is reimplementing certain visitor restrictions for the safety of patients, employees and medical staff.

Effective immediately, UPHS-Bell will allow one healthy visitor per stay for inpatients only. Visiting hours will be from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Exceptions include:

≤ A support person with the patient in the Family Birthing Center at any time, including one certified doula or midwife during labor;

≤ A parent, foster parent, or guardian of an individual under 21 years of age who is under the facility’s care;

≤ A support person with the patient for end-of-life care at the discretion and approval of the administrator on call; and

≤ A support person necessary for the provision of medical care, the support of activities of daily living or the exercise of the power of attorney or court-appointed guardianship for an individual under the facility’s care.

Visitors accompanying outpatients scheduled for a procedure, such an endoscopy, may be present at drop-off and pick-up locations to hear discharge instructions. Visitors are asked to wait outside the facility during the patient’s appointment or procedure.

Visitors are not allowed for patients in isolation including those who are under observation for suspected exposure or test positive for COVID-19.

All designated visitors with approval to enter the facility are required to wear appropriate masks or face coverings. Anyone unable to wear an appropriate mask or face covering may be denied entry into the facility.

Visitors are not allowed in the emergency department. Exceptions include a parent or guardian of a minor when it is necessary to support the care of the patient; a single visitor will be allowed.

UPHS-Bell continues to perform health screenings for all individuals entering the facility. It must deny entry to visitors who meet the following criteria:

≤ Symptoms of a respiratory infection such as fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing; muscle or body aches; headache; the new loss of taste or smell; sore throat; congestion; or runny nose, nausea or vomiting; and

≤ Contact in the last 14 days with someone with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19.

The main entrance to the hospital is open from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The emergency department entrance is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

“We want to reassure our communities that it is safe to come to the hospital should you or your family need care,” said Mitch Leckelt, CEO of UP Health System-Bell, in a news release. “We continue to provide the necessary care that our communities need.”

For up-to-date information, visit BellHospital.org/covid-19-information.

Michigan speeding up vaccinations

Michigan hospitals, local health departments and Federally Qualified Health Centers are quickly increasing the pace of vaccinations in the state, administering three times the vaccine last week compared to the number of doses administered the first week, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services announced on Wednesday.

According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tracker data, Michigan is 11th in the nation for the number of first doses administered to date –124,689 — behind Texas, California, Florida, New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Tennessee, New Jersey and North Carolina.

Michigan’s COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard as of Wednesday shows 152,511 doses administered due to a lag between when CDC posts data and the state updates its information.

“The more people that are vaccinated, the less spread we will have, the fewer deaths and the quicker we can get back to a sense of normalcy,” said Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, chief medical executive and chief deputy for health at the MDHHS, in a statement. “With a new variant of the virus in the United States, one that may be easier to spread than the current variant, there is more urgency than ever to vaccinate as many people as possible, as quickly as possible, with the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine.”

To increase the pace and make the vaccine available to those who have the highest level of risk because of where they work or their age, Michigan announced it would begin offering vaccines to Michiganders age 65 and older; frontline essential workers including police officers, first responders, frontline state and federal workers and jail and prison staff; and pre-K-12 teachers and childcare providers.

Additional data information based on CDC tracker data was announced as well:

≤ Michigan is ranked 10th in the nation for number of doses distributed –480,750– behind California, Texas, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia;

≤ Michigan is ranked 29th in doses distributed per 100,000 population at 4,814. Tennessee, New York, Missouri, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Texas are ranked just below Michigan.

≤ Michigan ranks 40th in the number of first doses administered per 100,000 population at 1,249 with California, Nevada, Louisiana, Idaho, South Carolina, Kansas, Arizona, Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi ranking lower. Using Michigan’s dashboard number, this would increase to 1,525 per 100,000.

“Although we have made progress, there is still a lot of work to do,” Khaldun said. “We have to all continue to do our part to end this pandemic. Wear your mask, wash your hands, continue social distancing and when it is your turn, sign up for an appointment to get the vaccine.”

Visit Michigan.gov/COVIDVaccine for more information.

Phase 1A to wrap up next

week in Marquette County

The MCHD, along with UPHS-Marquette and UPHS-Bell, began vaccinating Phase 1A priority groups in December. Long-term care facilities’ workers and residents are in 1A, it said, but have been or will be served by CVS and Walgreens pharmacies through a state of Michigan contract.

MCHD announced on Thursday that it will work to wrap up Phase 1A vaccination next week. It asks any 1A provider or agency that has not been scheduled to call 906-475-9977 to get on the schedule.

MDHHS is vaccinating Michiganders age 65 and above; frontline essential workers such as police officers, first responders, frontline state and federal workers, jail and prison staff; and pre-K through 12th-grade teachers and child care providers. Communication for anyone in a critical infrastructure or essential worker role in these categories will come through their employers.

MCHD stressed to people age 65 or older, or anyone with a family member in that category, that it plans to establish a permanent vaccine clinic beginning Jan. 20.

Aspirus issues statement

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday announced that the state of Michigan was expanding COVID-19 vaccine eligibility, deeming front-line essential workers and community members age 65 and older eligible to receive the vaccine from health care providers effective on Monday.

These groups are part of Phase 1B of the vaccination priority grouping. The vaccine has previously been reserved for use within the Phase 1A group of health care workers.

“We are excited about the announcement and are eager to begin offering the vaccine to some of our community members,” said Jessica Bessner, director of regional pharmacy for Aspirus in the Upper Peninsula, in a statement. “This is the latest milestone that hopefully brings us closer to the end of the pandemic.”

Essential workers in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, such as teachers and correction workers, are being asked to go through their local health departments to receive their vaccine. Community members age 65 and over will be able to receive their vaccine through Aspirus. For this group, appointments can begin to be scheduled at Aspirus clinic locations in the U.P. starting on Monday by calling 844-568-0701.

Vaccine supply and guidance remains fluid, and vaccinations are being provided through Aspirus by invitation or appointment only. No walk-in vaccination clinics are planned at this time.

Aspirus began vaccinating its employees on Dec. 17 at its U.P. locations and has since vaccinated 548 staff members. It also has been vaccinating emergency medical services personnel and independent clinical providers over the past two weeks.

LMAS provides vaccine update

In December when the first Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines arrived in the Upper Peninsula, the Luce-Mackinac-Alger-Schoolcraft District Health Department along with Helen Newberry Joy Hospital, Mackinac Straits Health System, Munising Memorial Hospital and Schoolcraft Memorial Hospital had plans in place to begin vaccinating the Phase 1A priority groups, LMAS said on Wednesday.

Long-term care facilities’ workers and residents are also in 1A, it noted, but have been or will be served by CVS and Walgreens pharmacies through a contract with the state of Michigan. Shortly after the Pfizer vaccines arrived, supplies of the Moderna vaccine also were shipped to the region. “As our counties and the Upper Peninsula wrap-up Phase 1A, we have received permission from the state of Michigan to move into Phase 1B, which now includes persons 65 and older who do not live in congregate care settings, along with critical infrastructure workers such as fire, law enforcement, school employees, daycare workers, utilities and other workers necessary to keep society functioning,” LMAS said in a news release.

Expanded vaccination can begin on Monday but will vary by hospital and vaccination supply, it noted.

“Unfortunately, we cannot give you exact timelines right now due to staffing resources, and uncertainties about vaccine supplies at any particular time,” the health department said. “The good news is there is hope with the vaccinations, and in recent weeks with a slowing of new cases with the Michigan’s pause in certain activities.”