LANSING, MI (WTVB) – Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer opened her press briefing in Lansing Wednesday morning with a renewed call for additional federal funding for schools, local municipalities, and state programs to battle COVID-19.
She said it’s time for Congress to pass legislation to help families, as well as state and local governments.
Whitmer said Congress needs to pass a recovery package to support state governments, families, frontline workers, and small business owners.
Unemployment claims are on the rise and it is not time to slash benefits, she said.
Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Chief Medical Executive Dr. Joneigh Khaldun also presented coronavirus numbers from around the state, saying the Detroit, Grand Rapids, and Kalamazoo regions have just over 40 cases per million people per day, Jackson and the Upper Peninsula are at 35 cases per million people per day, and the Saginaw and Lansing regions have just over 30.
Traverse City region is only area with 10 cases per million per day.
Dr. Khaldun said “plateauing trends are not a reason to let our guard down.” She said there have been “way too many outbreaks,” some traced to parties and day camps across the state.
The Governor Tuesday signed an executive directive strengthening enforcement of COVID-19 orders.
Executive Directive 2020-08 directs state departments and autonomous agency heads to review allocation of their resources to ensure enforcement of COVID-19 related laws is a priority.
That includes limitations on capacity and the requirement to wear a mask when entering a Michigan business.
