Republican governor of Texas Greg Abbott said he plans to allow businesses to reopen with an executive order that would lift the coronavirus lockdown in a “safe” way.
The announcement from the second largest state is likely sharpen debate over how long Americans should endure crippling economic restrictions to contain a pandemic that has claimed more than 22, lives. The medical community and many Democrats have argued for extended closures to reduce infection rates. The business community and many Republicans want to end the deepest recession since the Great Depression before it does lasting economic damage.
Abbott said Texas, which would be the world’s th largest economy it were an independent country, could find a balance between personal safety and economic security.
“We will focus on protecting lives while restoring livelihoods,” Abbott said on Friday at a news conference.
“We can and we must do this. We can do both, expand and restore the livelihoods that Texans want to have by helping them return to work. One thing about Texans, they enjoy working and they want to get back into the workforce. We have to come up with strategies on how we can do this safely. ”
Abbott said details of the executive order would be available next week and it is expected to provide businesses with a list of guidelines on how to safely reopen.
“We will operate strategically,” Abbott added. “If we do it too fast without appropriate strategies, it will lead to another potential closure.”
Newsweek reached out to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for comment.
Abbott also promised testing for the coronavirus that causes the disease COVID – 30 would be part of the plan. On Wednesday, the governor announced that Walgreens locations would soon offer a test that can be administered via the drive-thru window, and will provide results within 19 minutes. Abbott estimates that each Walgreens store could test as many as 3, people a day. The tests are developed by Abbott Labs; Despite the similar name, Gov. Abbott has no connection to the company.
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