Michigan’s COVID-19 cases are continuing to surge, breaking another record from Detroit Metro Times

Coronavirus cases in Michigan are continuing to soar, with the state breaking a new record for new cases reported in one day.

On Tuesday, the state reported 6,473 new cases and 84 deaths. The previous record was set on Saturday, with 6,225 new cases reported.

To date, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services has reported 223,277 confirmed cases and 7,724 deaths.

Deaths have not yet reached the record high of 164, which was reported on April 16, when Michigan was one of the top coronavirus hotspots in the country. Dr. Teena Chopra, an infectious-disease specialist and Wayne State University professor, previously told Metro Times that the lower number of hospitalizations and deaths suggests that the virus is being driven by young people, who tend to not be as susceptible to the virus.

According to data released Monday, nearly 5,000 students and staff have been infected by the coronavirus in school-related outbreaks. The majority of the cases, 4,042, are linked to outbreaks at 32 college campuses.

Last week, the University of Michigan announced it was offering more online courses and would even cancel some student housing contracts as the Ann Arbor campus reels from an outbreak that prompted Washtenaw County to issue a 14-day stay-in-place order.

Coronavirus cases have surged since the Michigan Supreme Court struck down Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s emergency powers. Though the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services has reinstated some of the restrictions that the emergency powers put in place, Whitmer warned that the state could see 100 daily COVID-19 deaths unless the Republican-controlled Legislature does more to try to curb the spread of the virus.

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Learn more about Teena Chopra, M.D., M.P.H.