Gov. Whitmer announces updates to MDHHS' COVID-19 restrictions during Friday news conference
(FOX 2) - Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer held a COVID-19 news conference Friday, Dec. 18 and announced that the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services is lifting some of the COVID-19 restrictions that were set in place Nov. 15 and is extending others.
Casinos, movie theaters, bowling alleys and in-person learning at high schools and universities are allowed to reopen and resume.
Other restrictions that were initially set on Nov. 15 have been extended, meaning indoor dining is still prohibited, night clubs are still closed and organized indoor sports are still barred. Workplaces, when work can be done from home, are also not allowed to reopen yet, and group fitness classes are still not allowed to resume.
Those restrictions have been extended through January 15, 2021
You can read more about MDHHS's epidemic order here.
Meanwhile, the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine has begun being administered across the state.
The Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine was approved for emergency use authorization last week. In Michigan, the University of Michigan Medicine and Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids were the first to give vaccines on Monday.
Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine could receive emergency approval from the FDA as soon as Friday. Johnson & Johnson and Astra Zeneca vaccinations are expected to follow.
Michigan is expecting about 80,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine in the first shipment from the federal government. You can read more about that here.
Michigan health officials have also laid out the prioritization plan for who will be receiving the vaccine. Frontline healthcare workers are the top priority. You can read more about that here.
The vaccine is anticipated to be available to the general population in Michigan in spring 2021.
Key COVID-19 metrics improving in Michigan
As of December 18, the state's medical director Dr. Joneigh Khaldun said health officials are seeing improvements in three key COVID-19 metrics in the state.
Case rates in the state have been declining in all regions for 27 days now and is at 439 cases per million people per day. The average case rate in Michigan peaked at 739 cases per million on Nov. 14.
The percent positive rate has been declining in the state for 11 days now and is at 10.6%. This rate recently peaked at 14.3% on Dec. 4.
Dr. Khaldun has said a percent positive rate below 3% indicates community spread isn't happening.
Also, the percent of hospital beds being used for COVID-19 patients has been declining in Michigan for the past 13 days. Right now, the current capacity is at 17.3% for beds with COVID-19 patients. This recently peaked at 20.1% on Dec. 1.