MICHIGAN (WKZO AM/FM) — There is some better news amid the coronavirus pandemic.
On Monday, Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist highlighted new data from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services that shows major progress in reducing the impact of COVID-19 in communities of color.
Black residents make up about 15% of Michigan’s population, but in the early days of the pandemic, they made up 29.4% of the cases and 40.7% of Michigan’s deaths.
Now, the state is seeing an improvement. According to a statement from the governor, in the past two weeks of available data, Black residents now account for 8.2% of Michigan’s positive COVID-19 cases and 9.9% of deaths.
In a written statement, Gilchrist said, “We have reason to be proud of the hard work and progress made to reduce the disparate impact of COVID-19 on Black people. However, we cannot lose sight of the fact that we are still in the midst of a pandemic that continues to take the lives of our friends and family. We still have work to do to tackle generations of racial disparities and inequality to ensure that all Michiganders can lead happy and healthy lives. And more than anything else we need to keep the Governor’s emergency measures in place to limit the spread of this virus, which we know causes disproportionate harm among people of color who start out in a more vulnerable position.”
More COVID-19 information can always be found at michigan.gov/coronavirus.
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