11/11/20: 6,008 new COVID cases, over 3K in hospital

Michigan: State health officials reported 6,008 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday raising the seven day moving average to 5,313 new cases per day.

The state also reported 42 new deaths from the coronavirus. The state is averaging nearly 50 deaths per day.

Kalamazoo County: The county did not update its COVID-19 numbers on Wednesday.

WMU: Cases of COVID-19 are rising again at Western Michigan University. The university reported 66 new infections during the last two days of last week. For comparison, WMU reported nine and ten cases, respectively, during the same time period during the previous two weeks.

WMU’s positivity rate has increased to an average of 7.4%.

Hospitalizations: The number of people being hospitalized for COVID-19 surpassed 3,000 on Wednesday. That day, 3,093 people were being treated in Michigan hospitals for the virus – more than 1,000 more than the same day last week.

Kalamazoo’s Bronson Methodist Hospital reported 52 patients with COVID-19 on Wednesday – a new high for the hospital. Bronson Medical Group reported 78 coronavirus patients among its four hospitals in southwest Michigan. State data shows the medical system as being at 77% capacity.

Positivity Rate: The state’s positivity rate is hovering around 14% for the second day in a row. The average positivity rate is almost 12%, which predicts increased spread of the virus.

Code Red: Most of the state is now colored “red” according to a metric developed by the Harvard Global Health Institute. The designations suggests we are at a tipping point and should consider stay-at-home orders like we had in March through May.

Just 11 of Michigan’s 83 counties are coded orange, meaning there’s a liklihood of accelerating spread of the virus.