Michigan Health Watch

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and state health officials note a rise in cases and positivity rates, and worry about a new variant of the coronavirus as well as a possible post-holiday spike.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer defended the state’s uneven vaccine distribution program. The expanded list of people who can get vaccines starting next week includes police, teachers and others more at risk.

Some frontline health care workers and first responders are reluctant to take the vaccine, contributing to Michigan having one of the lowest COVID-19 vaccination rates in the nation.

In a year like none other, 2020 was in many ways defined by a relentless pandemic that touched every element of life and killed thousands of Michiganders.

Coronavirus killed nearly as many as strokes, Alzheimer’s disease and diabetes combined in Michigan this year. Heart disease and cancer are the top two causes of death.

Coronavirus cases fell after Michigan imposed restrictions on businesses. But was that the cause of decline? And was it worth the cost to the economy? It could take years to know for sure, and anecdotal evidence nationwide isn’t as strong as supporters suggest.

The coronavirus struck hard in November, closing schools, cutting off incomes and putting an end to the notion that this mid-Michigan town could somehow elude a pandemic.

With vaccines still scarce, hospital and emergency workers are first in line. But as more get vaccinated, local health officials must make tough choices among essential workers and other, more vulnerable groups.

Grand Valley State University medical ethicist Jeffrey Byrnes addresses some of the moral questions involved in dispensing scarce supplies of vaccines.

He’d look at me, pleadingly, the reality of the situation dawning anew each time. And then he would wink or mouth the words “I love you” and his eyes would close again.