Gov. Gretchen Whitmer lifted Michigan’s stay-at-home order on Wednesday, moving the entire state to phase four of the MI Safe Start Plan.
Under the new phase, retail will be allowed to open on June 4 and restaurants will be allowed to reopen on June 8, both with capacity limits. Day camps, office work, outdoor pools and in-home services such as housecleaning will also reopen.
Groups of 100 or less can meet, effectively immediately.
“The data has shown that we are ready to carefully move our state into the next phase of the MI Safe Start Plan, but we owe it to our brave frontline heroes to get this right,” Whitmer said in a statement. “While Michiganders are no longer required to stay home, we must all continue to be smart and practice social distancing and encourage those who meet the criteria to get tested for COVID-19.”
Whitmer added that she hopes to move the state into phase five of the MI Safe Start Plan before July 4. That phase would reopen schools.
Michigan residents will still be required to wear masks while in enclosed public spaces, according to the order. Gyms will be allowed to conduct outdoor training sessions with social distancing, although their facilities will stay closed.
“The governor and I, along with a team of experts, have determined that our state is ready to move into the next phase of the MI Safe Start Plan. Hospitalization numbers are down, our frontline workers have PPE to last them several weeks, and the number of positive cases and deaths are declining,” Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Chief Deputy for Health and Chief Medical Executive, said in a statement.
Michigan currently has more than 57,500 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, according to MDHHS. The death toll is 5,516 and the number recovered is more than 38,000.
To read the entire executive order, click here.
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Jordyn Pair is a reporter with The Michigan Star. Follow her on Twitter at @JordynPair. Email her at [email protected].
