COVID Update: Infection rates flat as school resumes

Kalamazoo County: COVID infection rates went up in Kalamazoo County over the past week but only by a meager 2%.

Health officials reported 471 new cases of the coronavirus last week. That’s just ten more cases than the previous week. This week’s number averages out to about 67 new cases per day – basically flat compared to the week prior.

Death numbers are also flat. The health department reported just one death from the coronavirus last week. That’s the same as it’s been the previous two weeks.

But school is back in session, and that’s expected to change things in the coming weeks. Classes have resumed at every K-12 school in the county and students returned to area colleges as well. As more people gather in large groups and the efficacy of vaccines wanes, health experts warn that the virus is likely to see a resurgence going into the fall.

Meanwhile, Kalamazoo County’s has moved back into the “medium” risk category according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nine counties in Michigan are still at high risk for COVID transmission, but none of them are in Southwest Michigan.

Michigan: COVID stats are all basically flat statewide as well.

State health officials reported 19,158 new cases of the coronavirus over the past week, a 1.3% drop from the previous week. The state is averaging 2,737 new cases per day.

Officials also reported 129 deaths over the past week, six fewer than the previous week. Roughly 18.4 people died from COVID-19 each day over the past week.

Hospitalizations remain somewhat high, but largely unchanged from previous weeks. Hospitals in the state reported on Monday that they were caring for 1,150 people with COVID-19. That's 14 fewer than last week at the same time.