463 new coronavirus cases reported in Michigan on Tuesday; death toll rises to 24

Michigan reported an additional 463 cases of coronavirus on Tuesday, along with nine new deaths, bringing the statewide case total to 1,791 in 42 counties.

The uptick was the largest yet in Michigan as state and private labs increase their testing capacity. Still, most sick people are not getting tested, so the numbers are likely much higher than reported.

The increase comes on the first full day of Michigan’s stay-at-home order, which health officials hope will “flatten the curve” of new cases. The impact of the order won’t be known for about a week because people are tested an average of seven days after they’ve become infected.

Michigan now has 24 confirmed coronavirus-related deaths.

With 235 new cases, Wayne County now has 873 confirmed infections, which is about half of the state’s total. In Detroit, positive cases rose from 152 to 563, with eight of them resulting in a death.

Oakland County’s infections increased from 99 to 428, and Macomb County’s cases rose from 50 to 225.

Other cases were reported Tuesday in 31 counties.

Of the total cases, 1% are among patients 0 to 19 years old, 8% are 20 to 29, 13% are 30 to 39, 17% are 40 to 49, 20% are 50 to 59, 21% are 60 to 69, 13% are 70 to 79, and 7% are 80 and older.

The number of cases is expected to increase within a week as public and private labs receive more testing kits. So far, labs are able to test nearly 1,000 people a day.

To address the shortage, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Director Robert Gordon issued a new order Tuesday to ensure the most vulnerable people are tested.

“To save lives, we need to do two things: dedicate our limited lab capacity to the highest priority tests and obtain consistent, timely reports on hospital beds and PPE,” Gordon said in a news release. “This order aims to accomplish those goals.”

You can see the full testing results here.

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