Governor pauses reopening plans

The governor had hoped to loosen up rules in time for Independence Day, but coronavirus infection rates don't warrant it.

a sign for the Civic Auditorium reading "We are temporarily closed" — Kalamazoo Civic Theatre has been closed since the pandemic began in March. Fritz Klug

by Ben Jones

July 2, 2020

The goal was to loosen up rules on social gatherings and to allow gyms, movie theaters, and other businesses to reopen just in time for the July 4th holiday weekend.

After recent increases in COVID-19 cases in Michigan, Governor Gretchen Whitmer has decided to adopt a more conservative approach.

The rate of new daily infections has ticked up slightly over the past week in Michigan. The state reported 373 new cases of the virus on Tuesday. Though it’s well below the April peak of 1,953 new cases, health officials are worried about the potential for new outbreaks.

“It’s on every single one of us to do our part to protect one another, to protect the gains that we’ve made as a state, and to strengthen our ability to get our economy back on track,” said Whitmer at a press conference Tuesday.

Health officials aren’t just concerned about COVID, they’re also worried about COVID-fatigue, according to an article in Bridge Magazine.

Michigan residents, tired of living under stay-at-home orders since March, are going out in public more and more and being less and less careful when they do.

“It’s like they’re tired of it, they don’t care,” said Peter Gulick, an infectious disease expert at Michigan State University. “It’s ‘doggone it, I’m not going to eat my spinach anymore.'”