HE SAYS THE ECONOMY WILL OPEN QUICKLY … SOON
The hair cutters will be busy soon in Alaska. And they’ll have a lot of hair to cut, since they’ve been out of work since April 1, due to a government mandate related to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy said that Alaska is going to slowly and methodically open up the economy as early as next week, to include retail, barbers and hair dressers, nail salons, and even restaurants.
Dunleavy didn’t give specifics during his press conference, and said details would come later this week. Today’s announcement was more of a hint about what will come starting next week.
Dunleavy said Alaskans should expect to see workers in face coverings in public places like stores and restaurants, and that face masks are key to keeping the infection from spiking. And that they should continue to observe the hand washing, sanitizing surfaces, and wearing those face coverings when they go into stores or in other public places.
Dunleavy said Alaskans have done a great job in adopting the protocols of social distancing, not shaking hands, and sanitizing their hands and surfaces, and because of their efforts, the Alaska cases are diminishing. He noted that as of right now, only eight Alaskans are in the hospital with the infection.
Dunleavy did not, however, announce a rollback of the 14-day travel quarantine that all travelers to Alaska must observe, regardless of residency, or the ban on intrastate travel, but he said he would be discussing with mayors in Alaska tomorrow the steps to opening up commerce sooner rather than later.
Some smaller communities in rural Alaska may choose to take a much slower approach to opening their communities, since the health care available in rural Alaska is scarce, he said.
