Detroit Continues With Nursing Home Coronavirus Testing

DETROIT, MI — The city health department has conducted more than 1,400 tests for the coronavirus within Detroit nursing homes, with 357 nursing home residents testing positive, officials said Wednesday.

Denise Fair, the chief health officer for the Detroit Health Department, said 1,445 tests have been administered in 21 of the city's 26 nursing homes. With the tests, 357 people have tested positive for the virus, Fair said. There have been 129 people who have died from the virus within Detroit nursing homes, Fair said.

"We remain on track in our 10-day goal to prioritize our seniors and expect to be completed by end of day tomorrow," Fair said, regarding testing in Detroit nursing homes. "Once completed, we will turn our attention toward our long-term facilities. This is our skilled nursing facilities and assisted living homes where those living quarters are similar to that of nursing homes."

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The city of Detroit continues to lead the state in reported coronavirus cases. The city's health department has reported 8,105 cases as of Wednesday morning. Of those, 733 people have died — up from 728 reported as of Tuesday.

Detroit announced a push to test residents within the city's nursing homes last week. They've said 26 percent of people they test within nursing homes are positive for the coronavirus.

Mayor Mike Duggan, who has urged residents to continue to take precautions against the virus despite improving numbers within the city in recent days, reiterated those thoughts Wednesday in a news conference.

"When you look at the hospital data today, all of those numbers coming out of the hospitals look good," he said.

Duggan said the city is seeing its lowest amount of occupied critical care beds since the coronavirus pandemic began, and the city's newly reported deaths continue to grow smaller.

The TCF Center field hospital, a facility at what was formerly Cobo Center in Detroit that has the capacity for 1,000 patients, only has 17 patients suffering from the coronavirus, Duggan said.

The city also has signed-up 200 companies with more than 10,000 employees for drive-thru coronavirus testing at the former state fairgrounds in Detroit.