Michigan Coronavirus Cases Reach 41,000

MICHIGAN — State health officials on Thursday reported nearly 1,000 new cases of the coronavirus, as the statewide total eclipsed 41,000.

The new numbers include 980 newly confirmed coronavirus cases, bringing Michigan's overall total to 41,379. The state also reported 119 new deaths, bringing the Michigan death toll to 3,789.

State numbers are released daily at 3 p.m. but are indicative of what has been reported by 10 a.m. that day.

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Numbers are sometimes altered as public health officials investigate individual cases. Case numbers sometimes do not match numbers provided by respective counties due to several variables, including testing done by private organizations that report to either the state or the county but not both.

Deaths are reported by health care providers and recorded by local health departments. Other data, such as the number of individuals who have recovered at the state level, are released on Saturdays.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there are several symptoms related to the coronavirus. Potential signs of the new coronavirus include fever, cough and shortness of breath or difficulty breathing. On Monday, the agency added six new symptoms to the list: chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat and a new loss of taste or smell.

Southeast Michigan Coronavirus Numbers

Detroit has been the community hit hardest by the coronavirus. As of Thursday, the state has said there are 9,057 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 1,035 reported deaths. The city reported varying numbers on Thursday, but data often varies due to private testing and when results are recorded.

On Thursday, city health officials said tests had been conducted on every resident in the city's 26 nursing homes. Now, they said, they were switching gears, testing staff members at city nursing homes and residents in long term care facilities.

While Detroit reports individually, Wayne County also has reported a high number of cases. State data puts the county at 7,672 cases and 747 deaths.

Oakland County has had 7,267 confirmed cases and 696 reported deaths, according to the data.

Coronavirus Within Michigan Prisons

A group of civil rights attorneys on Thursday announced they had filed a class action lawsuit targeting the Michigan Department of Corrections for a lack of appropriate safety measures being taken within Michigan prisons.

The complaint, filed in the Eastern District of Michigan, alleges violations of prisoners' Eighth Amendment rights to be free from cruel and unusual punishment by exposing them to risk of illness and death from the coronavirus.

"When you put people in prison, you take away their ability to take care of themselves," said Kevin Ernst, one of the attorneys filing the suit. "If you take away that ability, you have to provide care for them."

According to the coronavirus data released Thursday, there are 1,453 people housed within MDOC facilities who have tested positive for the virus. Of those, 42 have died.

Economic Impact Of Coronavirus

The economic impact of the coronavirus has been felt in Michigan as it has by other states around the country. Across the nation, millions of people have had to file for unemployment benefits after many were furloughed by businesses struggling to stay afloat during the pandemic.

Over 81,000 Michiganders applied for unemployment during the week ending April 25 as the new coronavirus continues to impact jobs across the country. Nationally, 3.8 million Americans filed for unemployment, a slight decrease from the prior week, the latest figures from the Department of Labor show.