Covid's resurgence in Michigan a sign the virus's severity could come in waves
Resurgence of Covid renews calls for health measures in Michigan
Health officials monitoring data in Michigan say that hundreds of cases of Covid continue to roll in while dozens of people die a week from the illness. The resurgence may become part of the norm as time goes on that the virus continues to mutate.
(FOX 2) - The days of Covid crippling MIchigan's hospitals may be behind it, however, a resurgence of cases linked to the virus are evidence that one thing is certain: the illness is not going away.
Instead, Covid's persistence in the state's health care system shows that the full story of the virus is still being told as doctors and infectious disease experts track an uptick in cases.
"We still see on average 150-200 cases per day," said Joe Coyle, the director of Bureau of Infectious Disease Prevention at the state health department.
There are also 100-plus hospitalizations and dozens of weekly deaths tied to the virus.
The ebbs and flows of the illness are early indicators that Covid could bubble up and flatten out over the seasons.
"We’re aware that sometimes these viruses, they do have waves and they do have cycles," Coyle said, "and there are some indications that in the western and even southern parts of the United States that they’re starting to see some increases off of their historic lows. That’s something we want to keep an eye on."
Covid no longer lives in the heads of Americans every day like it once did in 2020 and 2021.
But maintaining a cautious mindset about the illness will remain key for those that need to be protected from its side effects.
"We all want to live life normally," said Dr. Matthew Sims of Corewell Health. "What I would say is if you’re sick, if you’re coughing, sneezing, have a cold, respiratory symptom, fever, at least test yourself before you put yourself in the middle."
Most of the severe cases that Sims sees mimics what he saw at the height of the pandemic: those with co-morbidities and other health disparities face the worst effects from the virus.
To fend off the illness, Sims says wearing a mask can help - though it's not mandatory.
"It’s likely we’re going to have a surge of some kind," he said. "I don’t expect it to be like the big surges before where the hospitals are overwhelmed where tremendous numbers of people are sick."
However, the prospect of more Covid vaccine shots and the latest treatment options for fighting variants will continue to be present.