Health and Wellness

How many people would still be alive if not for COVID? How many more loved ones and people in our lives will we lose to this virus? We many never know. It takes a toll to witness so much death and suffering. During the summertime, I watched as my team and I started to heal. Morale was coming back, stress …

Michigan’s record-high number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients dipped Wednesday, the first drop in 49 days as health leaders continued to urge vaccinations while describing a dire situation inside hospitals. The state recorded 330 additional deaths, including 100 in the most recent 48-hour period. The seven-day average of daily deaths, 120 as of Monday, was up substantially from 67 two weeks …

One year ago, the biggest vaccination drive in American history began with a flush of excitement in an otherwise gloomy December. Trucks loaded with freezer-packed vials of a COVID-19 vaccine that had proved wildly successful in clinical trials fanned out across the land, bringing shots that many hoped would spell the end of the crisis. That hasn’t happened. A year …

The Michigan Court of Appeals won’t order a hospital to use a deworming drug to treat a man who has health problems related to COVID-19. The court said it won’t disrupt the judgment of doctors at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Ann Arbor. “A court directive in this matter could open the door for a flood of similar suits from …

Michigan’s COVID-19 surge is trending in a “deeply concerning direction” ahead of the winter holidays and, unlike a year ago, is not subsiding following Thanksgiving, state health officials said Friday while urging vaccines and booster shots. Infection rates and hospitalizations are near or at all-time highs in the state 21 months into the pandemic. Vaccination rates lag the national average, especially among …

Michigan’s COVID-19 hospitalizations reached a new high Wednesday, exceeding the previous record for the fifth straight time that the state has reported data. Nearly 4,700 patients were in the hospital statewide amid a fourth surge in infections. The roughly 4,400 hospitalized adults with confirmed cases was at the highest point in the 21-month coronavirus pandemic and 150 more than a …

A third 22-member medical team from the U.S. military is being deployed to Michigan, where hospitals are grappling with record-high COVID-19 patients amid the state’s fourth surge of infections. The nurses, doctors and respiratory therapists will assist Covenant Healthcare in Saginaw starting Dec. 12, the state health department said Thursday. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called it “much-needed relief.” Two other 22-member …

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration said Tuesday it wants lawmakers to quickly allocate $300 million in federal pandemic rescue funding to support COVID-19 testing at schools amid a fourth surge of infections in Michigan. The money was included in the relief law approved by Congress and President Joe Biden in March. It is set to expire next summer and is part …

Michigan’s number of hospitalized adults with confirmed COVID-19 cases reached a new pandemic high Monday, nearing 4,200 as the state continued to confront surging infections. The total of 4,185 cases surpassed the previous record of 4,158, which was set seven months ago when fewer residents were vaccinated. More than one-fifth of COVID patients in Michigan hospitals were in intensive care. …

A recent outbreak of 525 cases of influenza among students at University of Michigan has prompted the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency to issue a media release centering on the importance of a flu shot. Statewide surveillance shows flu-vaccination numbers are lower than last year’s, which puts the community at higher risk for transmission, agency officials said. The agency understands …