Most of Southeast Michigan is at a high COVID risk, according to Community Level data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday, Aug. 18.
Of Michigan’s 83 counties, 18 are at a high level (orange), 44 are at a medium level (yellow) and 21 are at a low level (green). The CDC uses Community Level calculations to determine COVID risk at a county level.
People in counties at a high level (orange) should mask indoors in public regardless of vaccination status, per the CDC. However, anybody with symptoms, a positive test or exposure to someone with COVID-19 should wear a mask in public regardless of where they live, the CDC says.
Here’s the latest map showing the COVID Community Level for each Michigan county. Tap on or hover over a county to see details.
(Can’t see the map? Click here.)
The 18 counties at a high level include seven in Southeast Michigan (Monroe, Washtenaw, Wayne, Livingston, Oakland, Macomb, Genesee), three in Southwest Michigan (Calhoun, Kalamazoo, St. Joseph), two in northern Lower Michigan (Manistee, Lake) and six in the U.P. (Mackinac, Menominee, Dickinson, Iron, Gogebic, Ontonagon).
Michigan only had 10 counties at a high level last week, although the numbers from the state health department were inaccurate. Some cases were left out because of a delay, per the state, making the numbers look lower than they actually were.
The CDC relaxed its mask guidance in February, shifting from looking at cases and positive tests to looking at cases and hospitalizations. The idea is to prevent severe disease and limit strain on hospitals.
The CDC looks at three factors: the percentage of staffed hospital beds occupied by COVID patients, COVID hospital admissions per capita and COVID cases per capita.
A county is at a high level when there are 200 or more new cases per 100,000 in the past week and either (a) 10 or more new COVID hospital admissions per 100,000 or (b) at least 10% of staffed inpatient beds are occupied by COVID patients.
If hospitalizations are particularly high, even counties with low cases can have a high Community Level, per the CDC formula.
(Not every county has a hospital, so each is assigned a health services area, a geographic region with at least one hospital. Counties are attributed the metrics calculated for the entire area, weighted based on each county’s population.)
Here’s more on the latest COVID trends in Michigan.
Michigan is reporting 2,798 new, confirmed cases per day in the past week
The state reported 2,798 new confirmed COVID cases per day this week. While the data shows a 45.8% increase in cases compared to last week, that doesn’t reflect the actual trend.
As noted earlier, there was a delay in processing lab results into the system last week, according to state officials. That artificially makes last week’s numbers look low and this week’s numbers look high, since those older test results were processed and reported this week.
So perhaps the best way to view the numbers is to calculate the daily average of cases from the past two weeks. In the last two weeks, Michigan averaged 2,359 cases per day – down 6.1% from the week prior.
Michigan also reported 511 “probable” COVID cases per day this week.
Cases are considered “confirmed” when there’s a positive result from an NAAT/RT-PCR test. Cases are considered “probable” when there’s a reported antigen (rapid) test or if somebody has symptoms and was exposed to a person with COVID-19.
All graphics in this story except the initial one (which uses CDC case calculations) are based only on “confirmed” numbers.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services reports COVID cases once weekly. The department announced 16,137 confirmed and probable cases this week.
Michigan has reported 2.4 million confirmed COVID cases and nearly 363,000 probable cases since the pandemic began.
The chart below shows the seven-day average for new, confirmed COVID cases throughout the pandemic.
(Can’t see the chart? Click here.)
Because of the MDHHS data reporting issue this week, we’re not including the graphics showing which counties had week-to-week increases in cases.
Michigan ranks 11th in the U.S. in new cases per capita
Michigan has the 11th-most COVID cases per capita in the U.S. from the past week, according to the New York Times.
States with the highest COVID rates are Kentucky, West Virginia, Alaska, Alabama and Mississippi. Cases with the lowest COVID rates are Vermont, Nevada, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Utah.
Michigan has the 24th-most COVID hospitalizations and 20th-most COVID deaths per capita in the past week.
Average test positivity is 21%
On Monday, Aug. 15, about 21 of every 100 COVID tests reported to the state were positive.
The positivity percentage has hovered between 18% and 22% in the past seven days of data.
The World Health Organization considers there to be a substantial level community transmission when positivity rates are above 5%.
Michigan’s rate peaked at 35% in January. It dipped as low as 2% in early March before climbing again.
The graph below shows the percentage of COVID-19 tests reported that came back positive throughout the pandemic.
(Can’t see the chart? Click here.)
Where are positivity rates highest? St. Joseph County had the highest percent positivity rate this week with 39.9% of tests coming back positive. Luce and Eaton counties were also above 30% this week.
Only two counties had less than 5% of tests show up positive: Montmorency and Baraga counties.
Check out the positivity percentage for all 83 counties from the past two weeks in the table below.
(Can’t see the database? Click here.)
The interactive map below shows the seven-day average testing rate by county. You can put your cursor over a county to see the underlying data.
(Can’t see the map? Click here.)
Hospitals treating 1,135 confirmed or suspected adult COVID-19 patients
Michigan has a net addition of 10 adults hospitalized with COVID this week, compared to last week, as there were 1,135 adults in Michigan hospitals with confirmed or suspected COVID as of Wednesday, Aug. 17.
It’s the seventh consecutive week COVID hospitalizations have risen in Michigan.
Of those 1,135 people, 115 were in intensive care and 41 were on a ventilator.
There were also 31 kids in the hospital on Wednesday with COVID.
Michigan is reporting 12 new COVID deaths per day in the past week
Michigan averaged 12 COVID deaths per day in the past week, down slightly from 15 deaths per day last week.
During omicron’s peak in January, Michigan was averaging up to 115 COVID deaths per day.
Michigan has had 34,537 confirmed COVID-19 deaths and 3,237 probable COVID deaths since the pandemic began. Put another way, roughly one in every 291 Michigan residents have died from confirmed COVID.
Below is a chart illustrating the seven-day average for reported deaths throughout the pandemic.
(Can’t see the chart? Click here.)
Vaccinations: 63.2% of residents have received at least one dose
About 63.2% of Michigan residents have gotten at least one COVID shot, 58.0% have received the full original regimen and 33.6% have been boosted.
Michigan now looks at the percentage of all residents who’ve gotten a vaccine, as opposed to just those 5 and older.
Everybody 6 months and older is now eligible for COVID vaccines.
Health officials urge eligible people to get booster shots at least five months after the second Pfizer/Moderna shot or at least two months after the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine. (Federal officials recommend an mRNA shot after the Johnson & Johnson.)
Below is a vaccination breakdown by age group of Michiganders who have gotten at least one shot (initiated) and those who are “completed,” meaning two shots of mRNA vaccines or one Johnson & Johnson shot, as of Wednesday, Aug. 17:
- 75 and older: 87.2% initiated; 80.5% completed
- 65 to 74: 90.4% initiated; 84.7% completed
- 50 to 64: 76.8% initiated; 71.9% completed
- 40 to 49: 67.5% initiated; 62.2% completed
- 30 to 39: 65.8% initiated; 59.3% completed
- 20 to 29: 55.4% initiated; 49.1% completed
- 16 to 19: 56.3% initiated; 51.3% completed
- 12 to 15: 49.5% initiated; 45.9% completed
- 5 to 11: 29.8% initiated; 26.9% completed
- Younger than 5: 4.7% initiated, 2.3% completed
Below is a chart that ranks counties from most vaccinated to least vaccinated.
(Can’t see the chart? Click here.)
For more statewide data, visit MLive’s coronavirus data page.
To find a testing site near you, check out the state’s online test find send an email to COVID19@michigan.gov, or call 888-535-6136 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays.
If you have any COVID-19 questions, please submit them to covidquestions@mlive.com to be considered for future MLive reporting.
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