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- “We are seeing a surge in Michigan despite the fact that we have some of the strongest policies in place, mask mandates, capacity limits, working from home,” Whitmer said.
- Data shows more than 50,000 Michigan residents tested positive for the virus in the past week, with a test positivity rate of more than 17 percent.
- More than 2 million Michigan residents have been fully inoculated against COVID-19, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) committed Sunday to work with the Biden administration to get more vaccines into her state, which has the fastest growing number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S.
Whitmer said on CBS’s Face the Nation that she is pleased with the Biden administration’s targeted plan to address the pandemic, but she pledged to work with the White House to secure resources vital to combat the spread in her state — including additional vaccines.
“We are getting shots in arms. We got over a million shots in arms just in the last two weeks,” Whitmer said. “So we have really been rolling.”
“But all of that being said, right now, we know we’ve got even greater capacity. We could get more vaccines in arms. And when there is a surge, we think that it’s important that we rush in to meet where that need is, because what’s happening in Michigan today could be what’s happening in other states tomorrow,” the governor added.
Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 data shows more than 50,000 Michigan residents tested positive for the virus in the past week, with a test positivity rate of more than 17 percent. There have been 17,563 COVID-19 deaths in the state since the beginning of the pandemic.
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The Democratic governor, who asked her state Friday to contribute to slowing the spread through a voluntary pause of many group activities, attributed the rise in cases to emerging virus variants. But she was clear at the time her wishes were not “not orders, mandates or requirements:”
“We are seeing a surge in Michigan despite the fact that we have some of the strongest policies in place, mask mandates, capacity limits, working from home. We’ve asked our state for a two-week pause. So despite all of that, we are seeing a surge because of these variants.”
“And that’s precisely why we’re really encouraging [the White House] to think about surging vaccines into the state of Michigan,” the governor said.
More than 2 million Michigan residents have been fully inoculated against COVID-19, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
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