Michigan Reports 659 New COVID-19 Cases, 43 Deaths – 9&10 News

Michigan is reporting 659 new cases of the coronavirus and 43 additional COVID-19 deaths.

Michigan now has 53,009 total confirmed coronavirus cases and 5,060 COVID-19 deaths.

The state updates these numbers every day at 3 p.m.

Tuesday the state was at 52,350 confirmed cases with 5,017 deaths.

The state is now providing weekly updates on the number of people who have recovered from COVID-19. These numbers will be updated every Saturday.

As of May 15, 28,234 are being reported as recovered in Michigan.

The state defines ‘recovered’ as the number of persons with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis who are alive 30 days post-onset (or referral date if onset is not available).

Another protest is planned for Wednesday in Lansing, but this time protesters are bringing scissors.

A group of barbers plan to offer free haircuts on the Capitol lawn Wednesday afternoon.

It’s called ‘Operation Haircut.’

Governor Gretchen Whitmer says it’s unlikely salons will reopen next week because it’s impossible to social distance while cutting hair.

Protest organizers say people will be cutting hair, grooming dogs and offering massages.

President Donald Trump says he’s wants to withhold federal COVID-19 funding for Michigan because of absentee voting.

The president says absentee ballots were sent to millions of voters using federal relief funds.

That is not true. The state sent applications for absentee ballots to more than 7.5 million voters for both the August primary and November’s general election.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson says applications for the ballots were also mailed out in states like Iowa, Georgia, Nebraska and West Virginia.

Trump later lodged a similar threat against Nevada, which has mailed actual ballots. Trump’s authority to hold up funding for either state is unclear.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has released new guidelines for reopening the country amid the coronavirus pandemic.

It comes as government-mandated stay-at-home orders are being eased across the country.

The 60-page report details steps the CDC suggests the U.S. takes as it moves away from those stay-at-home orders.

It includes a detailed road map on how schools, restaurants, transit and child care facilities should safely reopen.

But many state officials like Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine are saying just because they’re easing up on restrictions, doesn’t mean we’re in the clear.

“We are now moving from orders to strong recommendations. This is a new phase in our battle against the virus,” DeWine said.

The last states to relax their rules were Massachusetts and Connecticut this week.

Despite the reopenings, as of Tuesday, at least 17 states reported a rise in daily case rates.

And with every state in the country now beginning to reopen, leaders in the nation’s capital are shifting their focus to America’s economic recovery.

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell testified remotely before the Senate Banking Committee Tuesday.

They faced questions from lawmakers about the CARES Act. That’s the historic $2.2 trillion emergency relief package.

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