MARQUETTE — The Marquette County Health Department on Friday announced that additional cases of the COVID-19 delta variant have been detected in Marquette County and the Upper Peninsula since the first confirmed case of the delta variant in Marquette County was announced by the health department on July 20.

“Much like the rest of the country, we are now dealing with a virus that has the potential to cause a surge in cases, hospitalizations and deaths,” health department officials said in a news release. “Right now, we know that one of the best efforts to maintain low levels of hospitalizations and illness in our community is to increase vaccination rates. We encourage anyone who has not been vaccinated to make an appointment. There are three safe vaccine options that have been proven effective against the delta variant, all readily available in our community.”

Officials said that in addition to vaccination, “the same preventative efforts that we have become accustomed to should not be forgotten. Stay home when you are ill and seek out testing to detect COVID cases early. Consider mask use, social distancing and avoiding large crowds. As always, wash your hands.”

Those who wish to make an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine can call the Marquette County Health Department at 906-475-7844.

There are also many pharmacy, retail and health care provider locations in Marquette County that offer the vaccine, according to the health department.

These locations include Walgreens, Walmart, Snyder Drug, Campus Pharmacy, Meijer, Target and Upper Great Lakes Family Health Centers, officials said. People can also call their health care provider.

More information can be found at www.mqthealth.org.

Additional food assistance benefits to be distributed this month

All Michigan families who are eligible for food assistance benefits are receiving an additional monthly payment this month in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services announced Friday.

More than 1.25 million people in nearly 700,000 Michigan households will benefit, officials said.

“As we continue our economic jumpstart, we must ensure that every Michigan family can put food on the table,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a news release. “My administration, MDHHS, and other partners have worked to ensure that nobody went hungry in the middle of a global pandemic. It is essential for us to continue our efforts, and I thank the Biden administration for helping us feed 1.25 million Michiganders in 700,000 households across the state.”

Eligible clients will see additional food assistance benefits on their Bridge Card from Saturday through Friday. Additional benefits will be loaded onto Bridge Cards as a separate payment from the assistance that is provided earlier in the month.

“MDHHS is pleased to be able to continue to help families affected by the pandemic put food on the table,” said MDHHS Director Elizabeth Hertel in the release. “We will continue working hard to provide Michigan residents who are in need with easy access to benefits.”

Some residents began receiving additional food assistance in April 2020 after the beginning of the pandemic that started the month before. In May 2021, all eligible households began getting extra monthly benefits. Federal approval is necessary every month.

All households eligible for SNAP receive an increase of at least $95 monthly, even if they are already receiving the maximum payment or are close to that amount. Households that received over $95 to bring them to the maximum payment for their group size will continue to receive that larger amount, officials said.

Below are the maximum allowable benefits for SNAP customers based on their respective household size:

One person: $234

Two persons: $430

Three persons: $616

Four persons: $782

Five persons: $929

Six persons: $1,114

Seven persons: $1,232

Eight persons: $1,408

The federal government is providing additional funding to states for food assistance under House Resolution 6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.

Eligible families do not need to re-apply to receive the additional benefits. People who receive food assistance can check their benefits balance on their Michigan Bridge Card by going online to www.michigan.gov/MIBridges, or calling a consumer service representative toll-free at 888-678-8914. They can ask questions about the additional benefits by calling or emailing their caseworker.

Customer service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Spanish and Arabic service is available. People who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing or speech-impaired, can call the Michigan Relay Center at 711.

Protect Michigan Commission, MDHHS partner with Dollar General, SnapNurse to offer vaccine clinics

The Protect Michigan Commission and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services announced Friday that they are partnering with Dollar General and SnapNurse to host community-level COVID-19 vaccine clinics.

Select Dollar General stores across the state on Friday started hosting COVID-19 clinics from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

In the U.P., Dollar General stores in Newberry and Stephenson will offer the vaccines.

The Newberry Dollar General is located at 7753 M-123. The Stephenson Dollar General is located at 5723 U.S. 41.

Clinics in Newberry will be offered today, Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Aug. 14-Aug. 16, Aug. 18, Aug. 20-23, Aug. 25 and Aug. 27-30, according to the MDHHS.

Clinics in Stephenson will be offered today, Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Aug. 14-Aug. 16, Aug. 18, Aug. 20-23, Aug. 25 and Aug. 27-30, according to the MDHHS.

Vaccines will be administered by SnapNurse, a tech-enabled health care staffing platform.

“We’ve made significant progress vaccinating more Michigan residents, and we recognize the importance of helping to overcome challenges to vaccination,” said Kerry Ebersole Singh, director of the Protect Michigan Commission, in a news release. “This partnership helps to break down barriers of accessing the vaccine by bringing clinics to where people are in our communities, including rural and other communities that are harder to reach.”

As of Friday, 63.8% — more than 5.16 million Michiganders — age 16 and older have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccination, according to MDHHS data.

“Dollar General’s footprint in the state of Michigan provides an opportunity to reach residents in rural and metropolitan communities alike with local access to the COVID-19 vaccine,” said Kelly Blankenship, Dollar General’s vice president of store operations, in the release. “We are honored to support this public/private partnership with the State of Michigan and SnapNurse. DG is committed to being a part of the solution to combat COVID-19 and provide greater access to those who are seeking the vaccine.”

To reach 70%, a total of 5,667,842 residents age 16 and older will need to be immunized.

“SnapNurse is proud to provide greater access to vaccines throughout the state of Michigan,” said Cherie Kloss, SnapNurse founder and CEO. “Through our tech-enabled staffing platform, we mobilize via SnapClinics in less than 48 hours, providing rapid vaccine access — even in traditionally underserved areas.

Residents seeking more information about the COVID-19 vaccine can visit Michigan.gov/COVIDvaccine.