1/5/21: Kalamazoo case counts, deaths rise

Kalamazoo County: Kalamazoo health officials on Tuesday reported COVID-19 statistics for the first time since December 30. The numbers show infection rates and deaths have gotten worse in the interim.

The county reported 421 new cases of COVID-19 over the course of the six-day period. That divides out to roughly 70 new infections per day. The seven day moving average was 71 new infections per day, which is much higher than the 62 per day the last time the county reported.

Officials also reported 21 new deaths from the coronavirus over the six days. That boosted the seven day average to three deaths per day – almost double what it was on December 30.

Michigan: COVID numbers across the rest of the state are receding again after rising over the past week.

State health officials reported 2,291 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday. That dropped the state’s seven day moving average to 2,927 new cases per day – 160 less than the previous day.

The state also reported 189 deaths from the coronavirus, with 117 of them coming as a result of a review of previous death records. The state’s average dropped a fraction to 83.57 deaths per day over the previous week.

Hospitalizations: Meanwhile, the number of people being treated for COVID-19 in Michigan hospitals bumped up slightly on Tuesday. The state reported 2,758 coronavirus patients – 60 more than the previous day.

The number of children being treated for COVID-19 in Michigan has increased dramatically over the past few days. The number of coronavirus patients under age 18 has been consistently in the high teens/low 20s for several months now. But on Monday it jumped to 53 patients before rising even higher to 64 patients on Tuesday.

In Kalamazoo County, Bronson Methodist Hospital’s COVID patient count has also increased. The hospital counted 48 coronavirus patients on Tuesday. That’s nine higher than on Monday.

Vaccines: The rate of vaccinations in Michigan continues to move slowly. More than 140,000 people had received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine as of Monday. But that’s only a small proportion of the 379,000 doses of the vaccine that were ready for use that day.

In Kalamazoo County, 5,989 people had been vaccinated as of Monday. That’s nearly half the doses of vaccine that have been distributed to facilities in the county.