Few coronavirus cases, lots of land. Should northern Michigan reopen? [View all]

Draw a line across Michigan from Lake Huron to Lake Michigan, just above Bay City, and you may begin to understand Judi Schwalbach’s frustration.

The area north of that line includes 41 of Michigan’s 83 counties, more than half of the state’s land mass, but just 9.2 percent of the state’s population and less than 2 percent of the COVID-19 cases and deaths.

As of Sunday, the area had 635 of the state's 43,000 cases and 51 of more than 4,000 deaths.

Schwalbach and thousands of others who live in northern Michigan are following social-distancing rules, but see few cases of the virus, leading to anger that prompted some to descend on Lansing, most recently Thursday, to protest Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s economic restrictions during the pandemic.

Read more: https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-government/few-coronavirus-cases-lots-land-should-northern-michigan-reopen