Thursday News Hit: Unemployment numbers, timing Michigan's reopening and Oakland County gets drive-thru testing
It's Thursday, and that means another weekly jobless report is expected from the U.S. Labor Department and if the last three weeks have been any indication for how the first full week of April will look, it's not going to be pretty. After another rocky week for the economy on all levels, few signs are pointing to a bottoming out of the market.
Over the last three weeks, the U.S. unemployment rate has skyrocketed at a pace never seen before, leaving one in 10 without a job. While the national numbers are large, a similar narrative is playing out in Michigan, which has struggled to keep up with the number of new claims since COVID-19 paralyzed the state's economy. Over the last two weeks, almost 700,000 residents have applied for aid.
In early April, Whitmer characterized the state's unemployment problem by saying that on average 5,000 new claims were filed weekly before the pandemic. At its worst during the Great Recession in 2008, 77,000 claims were filed. "More people have applied in two weeks than have applied in all of 2019," she said during a press conference. The surge in new cases has crippled the state's unemployment website multiple times even as the governor as expanded benefits to include more of the state's workforce.
While the economic crash catalyzed by COVID-19's spread was predicted to be hard, recovering from it is far from uncertain. How Michigan reintegrates its workforce is still unknown as Whitmer has ideologically clashed with critics over when she should lift her shelter in place order and allow nonessential businesses to reopen. It's a game that many governors, as well as the federal government, are playing while the COVID-19 spread continues to develop.
People seeking employment line up outside an employment guide job fair on September 17, 2009 at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore, Maryland. Employers from various fields are attending the event in the hopes of recruiting new workers. New
A Michigan State University professor told FOX 2 on Wednesday that if the economy does open too soon, the state would see "an eruption again of the COVID virus."
"Then we have to again revisit the issue of a shortage of perhaps Intensive Care Unit beds, and vents and so on. The worst fear of all, is that that there will be an increase in the number of people who would die, who should not have died if we had been a bit more careful in terms of opening up the economy," said Professor Leonard Fleck.
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In order for the state to go back to work, it will require striking a balance that doesn't harm the economy too much but gives hospitals enough time to recover as the virus begins to slow. In Michigan signs of that are already beginning to show with more than 1,000 new cases getting added to the state total yesterday - almost a 50% reduction from the state's peak daily total reported April 3 when almost 2,000 new cases were reported.
As the number of cases continues to decline, the testing infrastructure in the state is ramping up. Modeling off of Detroit's drive-thru testing site, which Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan cited as one of the country's most successful, Oakland County is opening up its first drive-thru site as well.
While plans for Detroit's drive-thru testing were scheduled for March 26, it was always the intention that officials would open more sites in the tri-county area as testing production ramped up.
New drive-thru testing site opens in Oakland County
Following Detroit's model for drive-thru testing, Oakland County will be getting one of its own on Thursday. Testing for those with appointments begin at 9 a.m.
Beginning at 9 a.m., testing will be available to first responders, essential or critical infrastructure employees, people 65 or older and those with underlying health issues as well as residents of Pontiac - where the drive-thru site is located. Similar to Detroit's testing site, anyone interested in getting tested will first need to make an appointment through the Health Division's Nurse on Call hotline at (248) 848-5533. Beginning with screening between 50-100 individuals on Thursday and Friday, public health officials anticipate ramping up testing to 250 a day.
The site will be open from 9 a.m to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and is located at 1200 N. Telegraph Road Pontiac. The drive-thru testing will be conducted in the parking lot behind the medical examiner's office.
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Trump expected to announce new guidelines for states on easing restrictions
The president is expected to announce new guidelines for states on best practices for reducing restrictions deployed by governors to slow the spread of COVID-19. On Thursday, Donald Trump will clear the way for areas with low transmissions while keeping restrictions in place for harder-hit places.
There's been some consternation between state leaders and the president over who has the authority to reopen states after the pandemic. While the decision ultimately lies with governors, Trump has claimed he has "total authority" to decide - a statement he walked back a day later.