While announcing the new MDHHS order for three weeks of stricter COVID-19 regulations, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said she hopes residents follow the new laws to avoid another stay-at-home order.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services is implementing a three-week statewide “pause” from Wednesday (Nov. 18) to Dec. 8 that will shut down indoor dining at restaurants, in-person classes at colleges and high schools, and much more.
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You can read the full details of the shutdown here.
During Sunday’s announcement, Whitmer mentioned the possibility of another stay-at-home order. Michigan hasn’t been under a stay-at-home order since June 1, when the 70-day shutdown was lifted following several extensions after the initial March 23 announcement.
“My hope is that everyone makes smart choices to keep yourself and your loved ones and our frontline workers and our community safe,” Whitmer said Sunday evening. “I hope they will double down so we can avoid a stay-home order."
Whitmer didn’t expand on the possibility of another complete shutdown, but last week, she said her team was considering further action to stop the spread of the virus.
“Right now, my team and I are following the numbers closely and strongly considering all actions that we can take to keep Michiganders safe,” Whitmer said during the briefing.
Three days and more than 15,000 new COVID-19 cases later, MDHHS announced the three-week pause.
“We have three weeks to see if we can all do our part and make a real difference,” Whitmer said. “Let’s do this together.”
As of Saturday afternoon, the state of Michigan has reported 251,813 COVID-19 cases and 7,994 deaths since the first cases were confirmed March 10.
Michigan reported 7,072 new COVID-19 cases and 65 additional deaths Saturday -- one day after reporting a single-day record 8,516 cases.