Michigan's death toll from the coronavirus outbreak continues to surge, increasing from 92 on Friday to 111 on Saturday.
The number of positive cases in the state rose by 993, bringing the total to 4,650. On Friday, Michigan ranked fifth in the U.S. in total confirmed infections and is on pace to soon pass California and Washington state.
The most troubling statistic is the death toll, which is nearly doubling every two days. With a severe testing shortage, deaths are considered the strongest indicator for the direction of the outbreak. A week ago, Michigan had just eight deaths.
The most alarming rate of new deaths and infections is in Detroit, the nation’s most impoverished big city. Making up 6.7% of Michigan's population, Detroit has 27% of the coronavirus deaths and 29.6% of the confirmed infections. The city's death toll rose to 30 on Saturday, a two-fold increase over Thursday.
Detroit has become a national "hot spot" and "will have a worse week next week," U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams said Friday on "CBS This Morning."
As of Friday, Detroit Police Chief James Craig and 39 of his officers have tested positive for the coronavirus.
In Wayne County, there are 2,316 positive cases and 46 deaths.
Oakland County now has 1,018 positive cases and 31 deaths. And in Macomb County, there are 534 confirmed infections and 17 deaths.
Of the total cases, 1% are among patients 0 to 19 years old, 9% are 20 to 29, 13% are 30 to 39, 17% are 40 to 49, 20% are 50 to 59, 19% are 60 to 69, 14% are 70 to 79, and 8% are 80 and older.
The death rate is far higher for men, who make up 68% of the fatalities but 50% of the positive cases.
Those who have died range in age from 36 to 97. The average age for deaths is 68.1, with a median age of 70.
The good news is, Michigan’s testing capacity has drastically increased over the past week, with more than 1,500 tests now conducted in per day. Michigan tested nearly 15,282 people since the outbreak began. But health officials continue to emphasize there is a testing shortage and that many infected people are not getting tested.
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