LANSING (AP) — Michigan's record high COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations could peak in late January or early February before beginning to drop, state health officials said Tuesday, while urging residents to help control the height of the crest.
“We have a choice to make: Do we want to work on bringing that peak down or do we just want to let this omicron surge explode?” said Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, the state's chief medical executive, who estimated the variant accounts for around 90 percent of infections in some regions.
Health leaders, who are reluctant to reinstate restrictions or masking mandates, continued to implore people to voluntarily be vaccinated, get a booster shot if eligible, wear a well-fitting mask in public and avoid large gatherings.
They should upgrade to an N95 mask or wear two masks that fit well, said Elizabeth Hertel, director of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Those who are sick but not in need of emergency medical care should avoid the emergency room and instead go to an urgent care or their physician and get tested at home or at a test site.
The number of hospital patients with the coronavirus, now roughly 5,000, could rise to around 8,000 under the most pessimistic scenario or increase slightly under the most optimistic model.
The figure is being closely watched because hospitals already “are under immense strain,” Hertel said.
Also Tuesday, the Michigan Parent Alliance for Safe Schools again called for state and county orders requiring masks in schools, noting that more than two-dozen districts or charter schools and four universities have recently pivoted to online learning due to staffing and attendance issues.
As of last week, K-12 districts with masking mandates covered 53 percent of students statewide — lower than before following the expiration of some orders that had been tied to those ages 5 to 11 becoming eligible for the vaccine.
One-third of residents ages 5 to 19 are fully vaccinated.
"Our state is on fire, because too many of those in power have not used that power to keep us from getting to this point,” Kathleen Lucas, an Ottawa County parent, said in a written statement. “Our children and educators, and our health care workers and those who need their care, are suffering needlessly due to this dereliction of duty.”
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