(WXYZ) — With Thanksgiving in the rearview and Christmas around the corner, Michigan is juggling a trifecta when it comes to winter viruses.
Right now the flu, RSV, and COVID are circulating around the country. According to the CDC map, Michigan is still in the green with low cases but these numbers were taken before the Thanksgiving holiday.
Nonetheless, just this week, the state hit a grim milestone when it comes to COVID. According to the state, 40,000 Michiganders have lost their lives to the virus.
“It makes me very sad because 40,000 is a huge, huge number," Natasha Ristovski of metro Detroit said.
Ristovski lost her father to COVID two years today.
“It all happened so very fast and not just to my family, but all the other families because I know how much it hurts losing someone so close to you,” she said.
COVID hasn’t gone away, but it’s certainly less of a burden for area health systems, says Dr. Ron Katoo of Express Med Urgent Care.
He’s also noticed that his patients are generally getting less sick.
“Definitely in terms of last year the numbers are way down, at least in the urgent care setting,” he said.
Even last year during this time, Dr. Katoo said there would be 25 people in his lobby in Southfield. On Wednesday, there were just four.
But unlike last year, RSV is rearing its head around the country, and the U.S. is facing a flu season worse than we’ve seen in nearly a decade.
A growing number of states, now 33, are battling high or very high respiratory virus activity according to the CDC.
Michigan looking good in comparison to other states on the CDC flu map and Dr. Katoo is hoping the state remains in the green.
“I think these next 30 days will be a big determinant of how the season goes," he said.
In the week ending on November 19, nearly 10% of deaths nationwide were tied to either pneumonia, COVID, or the flu. This has surpassed the seasonal baseline of 6%.
Doctors, of course, say the best thing to do to protect yourself and your family is to stay up-to-date on your vaccinations.
