GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Social distancing fatigue is a real thing, many people are eager to spend time with friends and family and now we have a blueprint for how to get there.
On Thursday, May 7, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer detailed a 6-phase plan to reopen Michigan's economy and relax some of the current social restrictions. It's called the MI Safe Start Plan.
The phases are:
- UNCONTROLLED GROWTH: The increasing number of new cases every day, overwhelming our health systems.
- PERSISTENT SPREAD: We continue to see high case levels with concern about health system capacity.
- FLATTENING: The epidemic is no longer increasing and the health-system's capacity is sufficient for current needs.
- IMPROVING: Cases, hospitalizations and deaths are clearly declining.
- CONTAINING: Continued case and death rate improvements, with outbreaks quickly contained.
- POST-PANDEMIC: Community spread not expected to return.
►You can read the governor's full MI Safe Start Plan here.
►You can watch the governor's full press briefing from Thursday here.
Michigan has already bypassed the first two phases, "uncontrolled growth" and "persistent spread" and is currently in phase three "flattening." The number of cases is gradually declining and low-risk businesses can reopen with certain safety measures in place, but still no gatherings. During her Thursday update providing details on the MI Safe Start Plan, Whitmer also announced the extension of the stay at home order. That's effective until May 28.
Once the state gets to phase four, "improving," Whitmer said that's when small gatherings will be allowed and even more low-risk businesses will reopen, including retail stores and offices -- with capacity limits.
“The worst thing we can do is open up in a way that causes a second wave of infections and death, puts health care workers at further risk, and wipes out all the progress we've made," Whitmer said during the press conference. "That's why we will continue to monitor the spread of this virus, hospital capacity, testing rates, and more as we work toward reaching the ‘improving’ phase.”
It wasn't made clear when we will get to phase four -- but the governor has said that the data will dictate when Michigan moves forward, not the date.
As of Thursday, May 7, Michigan's total number of cases topped 45,600 and the death toll reached 4,343.
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