Preliminary data shows that in 2020 117,087 people died in Michigan, which was more than the 104,166 births recorded in the state

Michigan's death rate was driven up in 2020 by 11,362 Covid-19 deaths, six percent higher than the 99,000 annual deaths the state was averaging 

The state's birth rate peaked in 1957, when more than 208,000 babies were born, but in the years since it has been on a steady decline 

With the birth rate down, experts predict Michigan's total population also shrank in 2020 and that the natural decrease will be even bigger in 2021

Recently released estimates from the Census Bureau indicate that Michigan had nearly 17,000 fewer people in July 2021 than it did in July 2020