Michigan’s health officials are tracking 340 known COVID-19 outbreaks, including 21 new clusters discovered within the last week.
The latest count is a 35% decrease from a week ago when the health department reported 494 active and ongoing outbreak. At that time, there were 29 newly added clusters.
Much like the state’s new COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and positive test rates, Michigan’s outbreak totals continue to decline as the weather warms and more residents are reaching full vaccination status.
An outbreak is generally defined as an instance in which two or more cases are linked by a place and time, indicating a shared exposure outside of a household. Clusters being tracked by local health departments are included in the state’s online outbreak tracker, which is updated weekly on Mondays with data up to the previous Thursday.
The latest report published Monday, June 14. Among the latest outbreaks include eight associated with long-term adult care facilities. Six other settings were tied with two outbreaks each, including K-12 schools, which have long been the leading setting for outbreaks.
Outside of K-12 schools and colleges, MDHHS is not identifying specific locations or the number of coronavirus cases. However, it is listing the information by the state’s eight health district regions. (Note those regions have different numbers than the MI Safe Start Plan.)
By region, the breakdown of the clusters:
- Region 1 (Clinton, Eaton, Gratiot, Hillsdale, Ingham, Jackson, Lenawee, Livingston and Shiawassee counties): 37 clusters, including zero new outbreaks.
- Region 2N (Macomb, Oakland and St. Clair counties): 18 clusters, with one new and 17 ongoing outbreaks.
- Region 2S (city of Detroit and Monroe, Washtenaw and Wayne counties): 17 clusters, with three new and 14 ongoing outbreaks.
- Region 3 (Saginaw, Alcona, Iosco, Ogemaw, Arenac, Gladwin, Midland, Bay, Genesee, Tuscola, Lapeer, Sanilac and Huron counties): 117 clusters, with six new and 111 ongoing outbreaks.
- Region 5 (Allegan, Barry, Calhoun, Branch, St. Joseph, Cass, Berrien, Van Buren and Kalamazoo counties): 86 clusters, with two new and 84 ongoing outbreaks.
- Region 6 (Clare, Ionia, Isabella, Kent, Lake, Mason, Mecosta, Montcalm, Muskegon, Newaygo, Oceana, Osceola and Ottawa counties): 36 clusters, with four new and 32 ongoing outbreaks.
- Region 7 (Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Benzie, Leelanau, Grand Traverse, Kalkaska, Crawford, Oscoda, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Ilse, Cheboygan, Emmet and Charlevoix counties): 11 clusters, with two new and nine ongoing outbreaks.
- Region 8 (Upper Peninsula): 18 clusters, with three new and 15 ongoing outbreaks.
By category, the outbreaks totaled:
- 93 clusters (eight new and 85 ongoing) at long-term care facilities, which include skilled nursing and assisted living facilities, adult day cares and group homes.
- 84 clusters (two new and 82 ongoing) at K-12 school or colleges. A total of 77 outbreaks involved K-12 schools, and the remainder were on or around college campuses.
- 73 clusters (all ongoing) were linked to manufacturing or construction sites.
- 15 clusters (two new and 13 ongoing) involved retail businesses.
- 11 clusters (all ongoing) in jails and prisons.
- 10 clusters (two new and eight ongoing) occurred at child-care centers or youth programs not associated with a school.
- 10 clusters (all ongoing,) were at health-care sites, which would include hospitals, medical and dental offices, dialysis centers and other facilities providing health-care services.
- Eight clusters (two new and six ongoing) were linked to bars or restaurants.
- Eight clusters (two new and six ongoing) in office settings.
- Four clusters (all ongoing) at migrant camps or other agriculture workplaces, such as food-processing plants.
- Four clusters (all ongoing) linked to private social gatherings, such as a wedding, funeral or party.
- Four clusters (all ongoing) at homeless or other shelters.
- Four clusters (all ongoing) linked to personal services, such as a hair and/or nail salon, or a gym or spa.
- Three clusters (two new and one ongoing) associated with religious services.
- One ongoing cluster linked to an indoor community exposure such as a concert, meeting, etc.
Outbreaks will be removed from the database if there are no additional cases through a 14-day period, state MDHHS officials have said.
State officials note that the chart does not provide a complete picture of outbreaks in Michigan, and an absence of identified outbreak in a particular setting is not evidence that the setting is not having outbreaks.
“Many factors, including the lack of ability to conduct effective contact tracing in certain settings, may result in significant under-reporting of outbreaks,” the state’s website reads.
On Monday, June 14, Michigan reported two-day totals of 338 new COVID-19 cases and eight new deaths, following a day off from reporting Sunday. Cases are down to less than 250 per day over the last week, while deaths are at 25 per day and dropping over the last week.
For more statewide data, visit MLive’s coronavirus data page, here. To find a testing site near you, check out the state’s online test finder, here, send an email to COVID19@michigan.gov, or call 888-535-6136 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays.
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