The day has finally come! Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has announced that the state of Michigan is lifting all COVID restrictions for capacity limits, face masks, and social gatherings next week.

On Tuesday, June 22, both indoor and outdoor settings in Michigan will increase to 100% capacity, and face masks will no longer be required. However, individual businesses will still be able to require face masks at their establishments.

Michigan was originally set for re-opening on July 1st, but considering the more than 9 million vaccines administered and COVID cases plummeting, that timeline has accelerated.

“Today is a day that we have all been looking forward to, as we can safely get back to normal day-to-day activities and put this pandemic behind us,” Go. Whitmer said.

Listed below are additional orders that are being rescinded next Tuesday (6/22), in addition to the gatherings and face masks order:

• Temporary restrictions for entry into congregate care and juvenile justice facilities.
• Mandatory testing for MDHHS’ juvenile justice facility staff
• Mandatory testing for MDHHS hospitals and centers staff
• Exceptions to temporary restrictions on entry into congregate care and juvenile justice facilities
• Exceptions to temporary restrictions on entry into certain facilities
• Safe housing for housing unstable individuals
• Handling of bodily remains
• Safe housing for Michigan homeless

Public health measures will continue reporting requirements and COVID-19 testing to make sure areas where community spread is high are identified. As well as MDHHS will continue to provide recommendations to keep citizens safe and reduce the risk of spreading in higher-risk places where vulnerable populations are not fully vaccinated yet.

While this is a great day for Michiganders, we cannot let our guard down yet. There are still several variants of COVID-19 circulating throughout the state, and until we can get most of our population vaccinated, there is more work to be done.