Here is the latest information on the coronavirus in Michigan, including the number of cases state officials report and other updates affecting West Michigan.
Monday's cases
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services reported 432 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, making the total 38,210. This is the lowest daily case count since March 23.
There were 92 new deaths reported. The total death toll has reached 3,407.
The Michigan Department of Corrections reports 1,048 cases and 37 deaths. There are 785 cases at one facility, the Lakeland Correctional Institute in Branch County.
The Federal Correctional Institute has 81 cases and one death.
Michigan started reporting the number of cases at long term care facilities this week. That data can be seen here.
The state health department is updating the number of recoveries on Saturdays. Current data shows that 8,342 people have recovered from the virus in Michigan. This is an increase of about 5,000 from last Saturday.
A recovery is counted as a confirmed COVID-19 patient who is 30 days out from the onset of their symptoms.
The number of hospitalizations continues to drop. There are 2,667 COVID-19 patients in hospitals across the state, including 832 on ventilators and 1,059 in critical care. There have been 607 people discharged from the hospital.
Michigan's case fatality rate is 9%, but health officials say this will likely decline as testing of people with mild symptoms becomes more widely available.
The state emphasizes that the report of cumulative data is "provisional and subject to change. As public health investigations of individual cases continue, there will be corrections to the status and details of referred cases that result in changes to this report." The state is also no longer reporting new cases by county.
Whitmer plans to ask legislature to extend state of emergency by 28 days
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Monday she plans to extend the state of emergency by 28 days as Michigan deals with the coronavirus pandemic.
The current state of emergency continues through Thursday, April 30. The governor said she will be sending a letter to the Republican-led legislature to ask for the extension.
Michigan re-engagement plan focuses on regions, low-risk workforces
Cases of coronavirus are plateauing in Michigan, but Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said during a Monday briefing that shutting down the state in the face of COVID-19 was easier than it will be to get everything running again.
"Stopping is simple--doesn't mean it's easy, but it's simple," said Whitmer. "But re-engaging is complicated."
The current stay at home order is in place until May 15, and it only allows essential employees to report to work and it relaxed restrictions on a few low-risk industries, including landscaping and lawn-care services.
Whitmer said in the next week or so, she anticipates to make an announcement that more outdoor industries and construction will also be able to return to work. She also said state leaders are looking at a number of industrial sectors to potentially restart soon as well.
See the slides from the press briefing here. And watch the entire news conference here:
A Michigan prison tested all its inmates for COVID-19. More than half have the virus.
The first round of mass testing at a Michigan prison facility revealed that more than half of the prisoners there had COVID-19.
Of the 1,403 inmates tested at Lakeland Correctional Facility in Branch County, 785 of them tested positive for the virus. There are about 30 inmates still awaiting results as of Monday morning.
Kent County COVID-19 cases hit 1,100 as officials target testing
The Kent County Health Department confirmed again Monday that the COVID-19 virus has yet to peak in the county. There are now 1,100 cases within the county.
Dr. Adam London, the Director of the Kent County Health Department says Kent County is still two weeks away from peak numbers.
COVID-19 peak in Muskegon County still weeks away, health officials say
The state health department is reporting, as of Monday, 234 cases of COVID-19 and 13 deaths in Muskegon County.
Muskegon County Health Officer Kathy Moore says the number of positive cases might not peak until mid-May.
Whitmer to give update at 4 p.m.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is set to give an update on the state's response to COVID-19 at 4 p.m. on Monday. She will be joined by the state's chief medical executive Dr. Joneigh Khaldun.
Order extends personal protection orders until July 21
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive order Monday that extends the validity of personal protection orders that would be expiring during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Under the order, law enforcement agencies are required to extend the validity of PPO to July 21. This directive coincides with a Michigan Supreme Court administrative order that extends PPO until 90 days after Michigan's emergency declaration is lifted.
1 million Michiganders have received unemployment benefits since March 15
More than 1 million unemployed people in Michigan have received benefits from the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency, but thousands are still awaiting payments.
The exact number of workers who have filed claims is 1,018,315, according to numbers issued from the state. The most recent U.S. Dept. of Labor report showed 1,178,021 Michiganders filed unemployment claims between March 15 – April 18.
Whitmer: Construction may be next Michigan sector to restart
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says she may soon allow construction to restart in Michigan if coronavirus hospitalizations continue to drop and testing rises.
She told Politico construction operations and other ‘outdoor enterprises’ could reopen in the next phase.
Sunday's cases
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services reported 575 new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday. The case count has been fluctuating over the past 10 days, peaking at 1,350 on Friday before dipping to 562 on Saturday.
The state also reported the lowest daily death count in nearly a month. There were 41 deaths reported Sunday, bringing the total to 3,315. On March 29, the death toll was at 29 before it started to consistently climb.
The Michigan Department of Corrections reported 1,031 cases with 32 deaths. MDOC is working to test an entire Branch County prison, which houses 1,400 inmates. The Federal Corrections Institute reports 81 cases and one death.
The number of hospitalizations continues to drop. There are 2,757 COVID-19 patients in hospitals across the state, including 871 on ventilators and 1,099 in critical care. There have been 724 people discharged from the hospital.
Michigan's case fatality rate is 9%, but health officials say this will likely decline as testing of people with mild symptoms becomes more widely available.
The state emphasizes that the report of cumulative data is "provisional and subject to change. As public health investigations of individual cases continue, there will be corrections to the status and details of referred cases that result in changes to this report." The state is also no longer reporting new cases by county.
State recommendations for COVID-19
Patients with confirmed infection have reportedly had mild to severe respiratory illness with symptoms of:
- Fever
- Cough
- Shortness of breath
- Chills
- Repeated shaking with chills
- Muscle pain
- Headache
- Sore throat
- New loss of taste or smell
The best prevention for viruses, such as influenza, the common cold or COVID-19 is to:
- If you think you have been exposed to COVID-19, call your health care provider. If you do not have a health care provider, call the nearest hospital.
- Wash your hands often with soap and warm water for 20 seconds. If not available, use hand sanitizer.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands.
- Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or upper sleeve when coughing or sneezing.
- Avoid contact with people who are sick.
- If you are sick, stay home, and avoid contact with others.
- Stay at least 6 feet away from others when in a public setting.
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