State officials are ordering Michigan restaurants to take names and contact information of customers, bracing for possible COVID-19 outbreaks.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services announced that the order will go into effect on Monday (November 2), the Detroit News reported Thursday (October 29).
Michigan Chief Medical Executive Dr. Joneigh Khaldun said the state’s COVID-19 trends are “incredibly concerning.”
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer echoed the sentiment.
"We don’t want to drop our guard and see our numbers skyrocket," Whitmer said on Wednesday (October 28). "And that is a very real possibility. Our hospitals are seeing it. We are seeing it in our numbers and our positivity rate. And that's why we all have to keep taking this very, very seriously."
No more than six people will be allowed at a table in restaurants and bars, and max indoor capacity will drop from 500 to only 50. Establishments will have to track names and phone numbers of customers in case contact tracing is necessary, a press release explained. They’ll also have to log the date and time each customer dined at the restaurant. According to the state, Michigan has tracked 12 restaurant- or bar-related coronavirus outbreaks.
Michigan has tracked 171,220 total cases and nearly 7,300 total deaths as of Thursday afternoon. There were 3,675 confirmed cases recorded Thursday and 41 deaths, state data show.
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