Whitmer: Barbershops and salons can reopen June 15

FRIDAY, June 5 — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed two more executive orders today as she continues to relax restrictions on businesses to reboot the state’s economy.

Beginning June 15, personal services businesses for hair, massages and nails will be able to reopen statewide. And starting Wednesday, much of northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula is authorized to reopen theaters, gyms and other places of public accommodation with restrictions.

“Today marks another milestone in the safe reopening of Michigan’s economy,” Whitmer announced today. “As we continue to slowly reopen different parts of our state, it’s critical that we listen to the experts and follow the medical science to avoid a second wave of infections.”

Only “personal services” such as beauty shops, nail salons and barbershops can reopen statewide on June 15.

Whitmer expects the rest of the state will be able to follow northern Michigan into the broader reopening of “Phase 5” of the state’s economic re-engagement plan within the coming weeks. Until then, movie theaters, ball parks  and similar venues can only reopen Up North.

In Phase 5, indoor social gatherings and organized events of up to 50 people are permissible. Outdoor events are also allowed, just as long as people still maintain a six-foot distance from one another and the gathering consists of no more than 250 people, according to the order.

Additionally, outdoor performance and sporting venues can open with a capacity of 500, which will allow for some outdoor graduation ceremonies. Whitmer has also outlined a series of rules for gyms, in-home services, hair salons and entertainment venues as they begin to reopen.

Those boilerplate restrictions mirror other required business rules, like providing appropriate protective gear, a COVID-19 preparedness plan and other related social distancing precautions.

Personal services that reopen on June 15, including tattoo parlors, must keep records of customers and their contact information, limit who can be inside the shop and where they can be, get rid of self-serve refreshments and magazines and require face coverings at all times.

To oversee the reopening, Whitmer appointed Sean Egan to serve as director of COVID-19 workplace safety. He also serves as a deputy director at the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, where he oversees MIOSHA, Workers’ Disability Compensation Agency and more.

In the numbers…

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services is now providing additional and improved statistics on its website to track daily coronavirus test results. Among the additions: “Probable” cases of COVID-19, as well as those that have actually been tested and confirmed.

The Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists uses a national standard to define those “probable” cases. In order to qualify, they must meet at least one of the following three criteria:

• A clinical disease and an epidemiologic link to COVID-19.
• Having a presumptive lab result and either clinical disease or epidemiologic link.
• Having a death certificate that lists COVID-19 as a cause of death or a significant condition contributing to death without a positive COVID-19 confirmed lab result.

No confirmed coronavirus cases were tracked today, but dozens of “probable” cases were reported statewide — including dozens in Greater Lansing. Ingham County tracked 35; Eaton County reported 32 and Clinton County tallied 36. The region tracks 1,192 confirmed or probable cases in its latest combined total — up from 1,089 confirmed cases yesterday.

Michigan tracked nearly 5,000 probable cases statewide today and another 240 probable deaths, edging up the combined case count past 63,000 with more than 5,800 reported dead. About two-thirds of cases, or 38,099 patients, have since tracked a full recovery from the virus.

Ingham County                     

Confirmed Cases — 755 (No change)

Probable Cases — 35

Total Cases — 790

Recovered Cases — 429

Recovery Rate — 56%

Deaths — 27 (No change)

Probable Deaths —

Fatality Rate — 3.6%

As of yesterday, zip code 48911 tracks 221-230 cases. Zip code 48910 tracks 91-100 cases. Zip code 48823 tracks 71-80 cases. Zip code 48854 and 48906 tracks 51-60 cases. Zip code 48864 and 488912 tracks 41-50 cases. Zip code 48842 tracks 31-40 cases. Zip code 48915 tracks 21-30 cases. Zip codes 48917, 48840, and 48895 each track 11-20 cases. Zip codes 48285, 48819, 48827, 48892, 48933, 49251, 49264 and 49285 each track 10 cases or fewer.

Eaton County                 

Confirmed Cases — 192 (No change)

Probable Cases — 32

Total Cases — 224

Recovered Cases — 166

Recovery Rate — 86.4%

Confirmed Deaths — 6 (No change)

Probable Deaths — 0

Fatality Rate — 3.1%

Clinton County                                                                                                                   

Confirmed Cases — 142 (No change)

Probable Cases — 36

Total Cases — 178

Confirmed Deaths — 11 (No change)

Probable Deaths — 0

Fatality Rate — 7.7%

The Mid-Michigan County Health Department does not report recovery statistics.                   

Michigan                        

Cases — 58,241 (No change)

Probable Cases — 4,928

Total Cases — 63,169

Recoveries — 38,099 (as of 5/29/20)                

Recovery Rate — 65.4%

Deaths — 5,597 (+2)

Probable Deaths — 240

Total Deaths — 5,837

Fatality Rate — 9.6%

U.S.                  

Cases — 1,886,555

Deaths — 108,768

Fatality Rate — 5.8%

Source: CNN

Michigan still reports the ninth most cases in the country, behind New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, California, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Texas and Florida. Michigan ranks in sixth in virus-related deaths, behind New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Illinois.