DETROIT (WWJ) -- Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan is urging Detroiters to get the COVID-19 vaccine as the city and state’s infection rates continue to soar and hospitalization rates climb.
Speaking at a news conference Wednesday afternoon at Detroit Public Safety Headquarters, Duggan says the city’s lower vaccination rate is leaving residents more vulnerable, something he calls very concerning.
Duggan said 22 Detroiters died from COVID-19 within the first 10 days of April. He said 10 of those deaths were people who had been vaccine-eligible since January.
“Many of these tragic deaths were preventable,” Duggan said in a tweet Wednesday afternoon.
Detroit's case positivity rate is at 21 percent, up from just 3.5 percent in early March, while only 25 percent of Detroiters have received a vaccine.
Noting Detroit’s vaccination rate compared to neighboring areas, Duggan is urging residents to get the vaccine to help ease the strain on the health system.
"Our lower vaccine rate is leaving our neighbors vulnerable in a terrible way," Duggan said during Wednesday's news conference. "The worst is still ahead of us. There is no doubt that that wave is going to continue to spread down into our city and we have got to protect ourselves."
Duggan said the recent surge in cases can be tracked to areas in the thumb region and it has spread south towards the city in recent weeks.
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Despite the recent pause of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, Detroit officials say Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are available and Detroiters can schedule appointments at a number of locations across the city.
Stay tuned for more details on the mayor’s COVID-19 update. >>> LISTEN LIVE