Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and a crew of governors from Midwest banded together this week for a bipartisan video urging people to follow COVID safety measures like wearing a mask and carefully consider their holiday plans as the pandemic surges.
In the video, Democratic and Republican lawmakers highlight a surge in cases across the Midwest. The video includes Whitmer, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, and Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers.
In a press call following the video’s release, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz explained that increased cases lead to bad outcomes.
“Infections are followed by hospitalizations, which are followed by ICUs, which are followed by deaths. That is an unholy pattern that we have seen carry itself out, and this is a group of folks that from the begining have done everything they can to reduce those avoidable deaths,” Walz said.
To stop the spread of the virus, the governors urged people to take precautions like wearing masks, along with reconsidering Thanksgiving plans.
“Getting together with your loved ones via Zoom to ensure your loved ones stay safe is the right thing to do,” says Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear in the video.
Whitmer said instead of gathering with her family, she’ll be setting up a Zoom call this year, and talking with her sister as they cook their Thanksgiving meals.
“Each and every one of us that chooses to stay home this Thanksgiving and not get together could be contributing to saving other people’s lives, and our own, and protecting our family members,” Whitmer said on a media call about the joint effort.
In Michigan, Republican lawmakers, too, are putting out videos urging caution around Thanksgiving.
“Our holidays need to look a bit different this year than in previous years if we’re going to return to normal in the future," says Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey in an ad he put out on Twitter on Wednesday.
“But if we take the precautions we need to take now, we will be able to spend many more holidays together in the years to come.”
In Michigan, cases have surged recently. The state’s seven-day average of cases is 6,965 per day, more than four times its previous peak of 1,626 per day in the spring. The state’s hospitals warn they are nearing capacity.
Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Director Robert Gordon issued a new order closing in-person dining, disallowing in-person instruction for high school students and limiting indoor gatherings to being between two households. It went into effect Wednesday.
More on MLive:
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A lot of bluster and a stark reality: Michigan legislature has no plan to stop surge of COVID-19
Michigan shutters in-person dining, high school sports in response to COVID-19 case surge
Gov Whitmer: Michigan is in the ‘worst part’ of coronavirus pandemic to date