Midwest governors to work together on reopening economies

Governor Pritzker has announced that he will be working with six Midwest governors to reopen the economy in the Midwest region.

Pritzker will work with Governors Gretchen Whitmer (MI), Mike DeWine (OH), Tony Evers (WI), Tim Walz (MN), Eric Holcomb (IN) and Andy Beshear (KY). 

The governors said, “We are doing everything we can to protect the people of our states and slow the spread of COVID-19, and we are eager to work together to mitigate the economic crisis this virus has caused in our region. Here in the Midwest, we are bound by our commitment to our people and the community. We recognize that our economies are all reliant on each other, and we must work together to safely reopen them so hardworking people can get back to work and businesses can get back on their feet.

Pritzker said the combined effort will be based on facts, science, and recommendations from experts in health care, business, labor, and education.

“Our number one priority when analyzing when best to reopen our economy is the health and safety of our citizens,” the Governors said in a press release.

The four factors that the group will look at include:

 Sustained control of the rate of new infections and hospitalizations.

• Enhanced ability to test and trace.

• Sufficient health care capacity to handle resurgence.

• And best practices for social distancing in the workplace.

“Phasing in sectors of our economy will be most effective when we work together as a region,” they wrote. “This doesn’t mean our economy will reopen all at once, or that every state will take the same steps at the same time. But close coordination will ensure we get this right. Over time, people will go back to work, restaurants will reopen, and things will go back to normal. We look forward to working together as one region to tackle this challenge together.”

Evers extended Wisconsin’s Safer at Home order to May 26 from the previous date of April 24 and closed schools for the rest of the year today while DeWine said that Ohio will begin to get some businesses back up and running again by May 1. DeWine also said that life will not go back to “normal” but rather Ohio residents will be required to continue to take precautions to protect themselves and others. 

Pritzker said that not every state will make the same decisions, but rather the Midwest states share similar industries, and collaboration makes sense.