Preston Withun wasn t the first person vaccinated for COVID-19 in Isabella County, but he was pretty close.
Withun, a paramedic with MidMichigan Health-Mt. Pleasant s emergency department, received the first shot of two COVID-19 vaccination shots in his right arm Thursday afternoon.
After conducting a first run with staff directly involved in care for COVID-positive patients, the network started inoculating its employees Thursday, including its hospitals in Clare and Alma.
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The shots as new positive cases show signs of leveling off. Deaths, however, continued, with an additional nine across mid-Michigan.
One of those was in Clare County, bringing its total to 17. It involved an elderly man with underlying health conditions, said Steve Hall, health officer with Central Michigan District Health Department.
Six new COVID deaths reported; including middle-aged man in Isabella County
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Gratiot hits 50-COVID deaths, 18 die across mid-Michigan
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In this photo provided by his employer, Bruce Smith, a FedEx package handler, works in a facility at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Cascade Township, Michigan, on Saturday, Dec. 12, 2020. FedEx is one of the companies helping transport a vaccine made by Pfizer. Helping with the transport of the vaccine has special meaning to Smith, whose older sister died in Georgia after she contracted the coronavirus in May. I think she would be ecstatic to know that something that has ravaged our family â that a family member is going to be part of such a big project, said Smith, 58, whose nephew also got sick and is still recovering. (Courtesy of FedEx via AP)
Sixteen people from Isabella, Gratiot and Clare counties were among the 29 who died from COVID-19 from Dec. 4 to Monday. Four of Isabella County s seven deaths were from two nursing home outbreaks.
Three of those were from one facility, Medilodge of Mt. Pleasant, 1524 Portobello Dr. In all, 61 residents and approximately 20 staff have contracted the disease.
The deaths all involving elderly people including two women, one who died on Dec. 4 and one on Dec. 8, and a man who died Dec. 9, said Steve Hall, health officer for Central Michigan District Health Department. It brings the total number of Medilodge deaths to five, including a woman who was Isabella County s second COVID-19 death in early April.