Genesee County public health officials are seeing what they anticipated, with the increase to 713 confirmed cases and 39 COVID-19 deaths, as of April 8, according to Michigan.gov.
Health Officer John McKellar appears to have been correct when he told MLive less than two weeks ago, “What’s happening in Detroit will make its way north.”
Statewide, over 20,000 positive cases were reported with 959 deaths as of 10 a.m. on April 8.
The state also saw the tenth consecutive day of 1,000 or more confirmed coronavirus cases, MLive said. The increase can be partly attributed to an increase in testing over time since the state began reporting numbers in early March.
Genesee County trails only three other Michigan counties in confirmed COVID-19 cases: Wayne with over 3,800, Oakland reported over 4,000 and Macomb has over 2,600 confirmed cases. Wayne County also reported the largest number of deaths with 195, Oakland at 234 and Macomb at 141. Genesee's 39 reported deaths ranked fourth in the state.
Residents should assume more people have contracted COVID-19 than the number of positive cases reported, as the virus is so widespread.
Ascension Genesys, Hurley Medical Center and McLaren-Flint Hospital are all prepared for treating patients.
McLaren-Flint has equipment to protect staff who care for COVID-19 patients, said Laurie Prochazka, spokeswoman for the hospital. But they could use more supplies.
“With the rising number of COVID-19 patients, we are accepting donated supplies now to prepare for future needs to protect our staff and community,” Prochazka told MLive.
The Health Department and Sheriff’s Office were credited by Board of Commissioners Chairman Martin Cousineau for their work during the new coronavirus emergency. Other county agencies are currently operating with a skeleton crew in county offices that are closed to the public.
Cousineau repeated his plea for Genesee County residents to shelter in place. Residents who need aid with food, medicine or travel can call the United Way of Genesee County at 211, or Genesee County emergency management at 1-810-257-3064.
Sheriff Chris Swanson asks residents not to call for emergency help if they have other resources available to them. He works with the Community Care Task Force to help people with critical daily needs. More than 1,300 people have already received aid during the pandemic.
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