(WWJ) Washtenaw County is lifting its stay-in-place order for students, as coronavirus cases tied to the University of Michigan trend down.
The order expires Tuesday at 7 a.m.
The county health department says university cases represented more than 60% of all local cases before the order went into effect. Now, those cases are around 33%.
Overall, the number of cases in the county are still high, with a weekly positivity rate of almost 4 percent.
"We are grateful for the cooperation of the university and its students on this order. We know this is incredibly difficult for all of us," says Jimena Loveluck, MSW, health officer for Washtenaw County. "We're thankful for this small bit of good news, but we all must continue to do everything we can to minimize the impact of COVID-19 on each of us and on our community."
"Recent weeks have left no doubt that the virus continues to circulate and have also confirmed that we can minimize its negative impacts by continuing to use face coverings and distance and cooperating fully with all public health guidance," Loveluck said.
With Thanksgiving and the winter holiday season approaching, the Health Department reminds everyone that COVID-19 continues to circulate in our community and cases are increasing in non-campus areas. Limiting gatherings as much as possible over the holidays and continuing to use COVID-19 precautions is strongly encouraged. If individuals or students plan to return home or visit family or friends, they should consider staying away from others as much as possible for two weeks prior, wearing a mask in public, and getting tested for COVID-19.
The health department says testing is recommended for anyone reporting to work in person, with known exposure, or with any mild or unusual symptoms. Symptoms may take up to 14 days after exposure to appear, and individuals are considered contagious two days before symptoms appear. If you are exposed and asymptomatic, please wait 7 to 10 days before testing. A negative test does not eliminate the need to quarantine for a full 14 days after exposure.
Meanwhile, new confirmed cases of COVID-19 recorded by the state health department have pushed the statewide total to more than 184,000.
The state reporting over 6,700 cases for Sunday and Monday combined, along with 17 more deaths. Hospitalizations in Michigan are also up to more than 1,900.
Get more statewide state HERE. Local COVID-19 information for Washtenaw County is available at www.washtenaw.org/covid19.
