Lansing, Michigan Michigan has become the most recent epicenter of coronavirus in the United States, but it is a mystery why.
“I don’t know what’s going on here. Michigan is just one of the hardest hit,” Scott Niswonger said.
Dr. Meredith Hill, emergency director at Sparrow Hospital, said the increase has been more drastic than the previous two weeks. “I think there’s obviously more outreach from the community right now,” he said.
Niswonger, a COVID-19 patient, said his son could have been infected in his nursery. He’s been at Lansing’s Sparrow Hospital since Friday.
“We all went and tested and we all came back positive and since then it’s been a downward spiral,” Niswonger said. “I feel like someone, a 500-pound guy who was just sitting on my chest and I couldn’t pull him away.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the latest rise in COVID-19 cases nationwide is driven by younger Americans. One theory: a possible link with school reopening and extracurricular sports.
“We are learning that many outbreaks in young people are related to youth sports and extracurricular activities. According to CDC guidelines, these activities should be limited,” said Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the CDC.
There has also been an increase in variant B.1.1.7 which originated in the UK and is now believed to be responsible for a third of all cases in the US.
“We know that B.1.1.7 is more transmissible, between 50 and 100% more transmissible. Either it is more transmissible specifically in different age demographics,” Walensky said.
But there is also good news across the country. Four million vaccines were reported on Saturday. According to the CDC, at least 23% of American adults are fully vaccinated and 40% have received at least one dose.
As of Monday in Michigan, anyone 16 years of age or older can get vaccinated, joining 27 other states to expand their eligibility.
“You get really excited because there’s a vaccine out there and it’s a little discouraging to see the spread that surpasses the vaccine,” Hill said. “We just try to hold on to each other and stay as positive as we can.”
Correction: This story has been updated to correct the attribution of a citation on the increase in COVID cases in Michigan to Scott Niswonger, a COVID-19 patient.