Michigan moved into phase 4 of the MI Safe Start Plan on June 1st. Entering phase 4 allowed small gatherings and the reopening of “lower-risk” businesses such as non-essential retail with strict workplace safety measures.
Last week, Governor Whitmer moved the Traverse City area and the Upper Peninsula, regions 6 and 8, into Phase 5. Indicating that cases and deaths related to COVID-19 have continued to decline in those regions, and outbreaks can be quickly contained. In phase 5, K-12 educational institutions can resume in-person instruction, and travel is no longer prohibited.
Even though the rest of the state remains in Phase 4, Governor Whitmer decided to open all personal care services such as salons and barber shops on June 15th. She also signed executive orders at the end of last week that lifted restrictions on overnight summer camps beginning June 15th and allows certain K-12 school sports activities and other in-person extracurricular school activities to resume.
In a press release citing a report by the Imperial College COVID-19 Response Team showing that the aggressive actions Governor Whitmer took to protect Michigan families from the spread of COVID-19 significantly lowered the number of cases and deaths that would have occurred had the state done nothing. Whitmer announced that she hopes to move the rest of the state to phase 5 by July 4th.
Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand
