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Whitmer: COVID-19 State Of Emergency Will Continue

Courtesy
/
Michigan Executive Office of the Governor

Governor Gretchen Whitmer says she will issue a declaration to extend Michigan’s COVID-19 state of emergency before the current declaration expires later this week.

 

“The state of emergency and the executive orders are together the backbone of our COVID-19 response,” she said Monday in an interview with Michigan Public Radio.

Republicans in the Legislature and business groups are using litigation and a petition drive to try and curtail the governor’s emergency powers.

But the Democratic governor says using emergency powers to issue face mask and strict shutdown orders early in the COVID crisis made it safer to re-open some sectors. And she says it is still critical for her to be able to act quickly to respond to changing circumstances.

“There’s no question it’s hard,” she said. “There’s no question people have made incredible sacrifice, and there’s also no question that we’re all tired of this – myself included. And yet, COVID-19 is still our reality.”

She said Michigan is in a better position compared to surrounding states, which has made it safer for movie theaters and other businesses to re-open.

Whitmer says the state’s response has also evolved to help reduce racial disparities in infection rates. Lieutenant Governor Garlin Glichrist leads task force that’s examining the problem.

“The state of emergency and the executive orders are together the backbone of our COVID-19 response.”

The governor says it will likely be months before she will be able to lift the state of emergency altogether.

Rick Pluta is Senior Capitol Correspondent for the Michigan Public Radio Network. He has been covering Michigan’s Capitol, government, and politics since 1987. His journalism background includes stints with UPI, The Elizabeth (NJ) Daily Journal, The (Pontiac, MI) Oakland Press, and WJR. He is also a lifelong public radio listener.
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