GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Michigan has recorded 11 more deaths linked to coronavirus and confirmed 571 more cases, the latest state data shows.
Five of the 11 deaths were discovered during a review of death certificates to find any that had not previously been reported to the state. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services has been running those checks routinely each week for months.
The data released Tuesday brings the total number of deaths to 6,612 and the total number of confirmed cases to 113,183 since the virus was first detected in Michigan in March.
On Monday, labs in Michigan tested 25,415 samples for the virus and 917 came back positive. The number of positive tests and new cases do not match because people may be tested more than once. The rate of positive tests was 3.61%.
The seven-day average of that percentage has crept up recently. Public health officials want it to be below 3%, where it was for much of June, as an indication that community spread is under control.
Wayne County, which has been hit hardest by the virus, saw four more deaths for a total of 2,777. It also confirmed 94 additional cases for a total of 31,447 since the start of the outbreak. Oakland County has had 15,717 confirmed cases (56 more than the previous day) and 1,139 deaths (three more). Macomb County has had 13,292 cases (33 more) and 957 deaths (one more).
Kent County added 41 cases to its total, now 8,367. The number of deaths stood at 170.
Ottawa County, which has been seeing more cases as the number linked to Grand Valley State University rises, confirmed 49 more cases over the previous day. Its total is now 2,849 since the outbreak started. It has had 60 deaths.
Statewide, hospitalization figures remain low, as do the numbers of deaths each day. The number of new cases per million people per day appears steady, if not on a slight decline, in recent weeks.
For the first time this week, the state released a list of K-12 schools, colleges and universities where outbreaks — defined as two or more cases outside a household linked by a common place or time — have been identified. Among universities, Grand Valley State University led the way with more than 400 cases. Central Michigan, Adrian College and Michigan State all had more than 200 cases. All outbreaks at K-12 were small, with fewer than 10 people affected.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will hold a press conference on coronavirus at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday. She will be joined by Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, the state’s chief medical executive. Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson will also be on hand to discuss the Nov. 3 general election. The press conference will stream live on woodtv.com.
