Health and Wellness

Rebecca Burns, health officer for the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency, spoke about COVID-19 and immunizations during her annual presentation to St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday. She said the agency administered about 40 COVID-19 immunizations at Project Connect, which took place earlier the same day. She said 40 may sound like a small number but in her …

Nearly half of Michigan residents live in counties where the federal government is urging everyone ages 2 and over, including the fully vaccinated, to wear masks in public indoor settings because transmission of the coronavirus is “high” or “substantial.” The guidance affected 33 of 83 counties as of Monday — including large ones such as Oakland, Macomb and Ingham — up from …

The Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency has provided updated figures regarding COVID-19 and its vaccinations for the week ending July 25. Agency officials said St. Joseph County reported 12 new cases and no deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported eight cases, and no deaths. Throughout the pandemic, the county has reported 6,288 cases and 101 …

The Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency’s Board of Health has approved the selection of Karen Luparello as their next medical director. Lauren Vogel will be stepping down from the position effective September 30. Luparello is a board-certified ophthalmologist, specializing in pediatrics and is affiliated with Hillsdale Hospital. She received her medical degree from Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine and has …

St. Joseph County reached a dubious milestone, as its 100th person to die from COVID-19 was recorded late last week. Officials from the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency said the 100th death occurred 15 months after the pandemic first reached the county in March 2020. Agency officials said there have been more than 5,500 cases of the coronavirus in St. …

Vaccination level in St. Joseph County reached 40 percent last week. Meanwhile, in Branch and Hillsdale counties, the number of eligible recipients remains below 40 percent. The percentage of eligible residents vaccinated by May 24 was 40 for St. Joseph County, 39.7 for Branch County and 36.2 in Hillsdale County. St. Joseph County experienced the greatest increase in vaccinations over …

Michigan health officials on Wednesday urged primary care physicians to enroll to administer COVID-19 vaccines, as the state prepared to quickly begin vaccinating 12- to 15-year-olds following U.S. authorization. “The most important thing we can do right now is to make vaccines available for whenever someone is ready,” Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, the state’s chief medical executive and chief health deputy, …

Here’s the latest COVID-19 update from the Van Buren/Cass District Health Department. Agency officials said they are now administering Moderna, and Johnson and Johnson to all residents 18 years of age and older. Through last week, the department had administered in Cass County nearly 8,700 shots, which represents about one-fifth of the county’s population. Cumulative COVID-19 cases in Cass County …

The Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph health agency has announced it is expanding eligibility for COVID-19 vaccination to include residents 60 to 64 years of age. Beginning Monday, additional eligible individuals will include agricultural and food-processing workers who meet specific criteria. Food-processing workers include those whose jobs are at meat-processing and meatpacking facilities; who process fruit and vegetables; dairy processing; animal feed manufacturing; …

The Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency has received an initial allotment of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. Vaccinations began for individuals in Phase 1A priority groups last week, as hospitals in the Branch-Hillsdale-St Joseph counties also received shipments to vaccinate their front-line workers. Communications are taking place directly with these entities, and clinics are not open to the general public at this …