Things in Alaska, the first state to completely lift capacity limits and reopen after the coronavirus pandemic was declared, are "going well so far," Gov. Mike Dunleavy said on Monday.
"First of all, I just want to mention on Memorial Day, we will be remembering up here as well and Alaska has the highest per capita [military] of any state in the country," Dunleavy said on Fox News' "America's Newsroom." "A lot of military bases are here. It's a solemn day but it's an important day."
And as such, Dunleavy said, residents have been told to "get out and enjoy the outdoors," and all businesses have been open since last Friday."
"We're going to see the numbers decreased," the governor said. "We have the lowest numbers in the country. There is a number of factors for that, like the distance from other states, and just the work that all of them have done to keep this virus as bay."
However, the Republican governor said, it's important to get the state's economy up and running, "and that's what we are doing."
But while the state is open, there are still some restrictions and guidelines, including social distancing, and wearing a mask to "be respectful to others, especially those who may have underlying health conditions."
According to reports, Alaska has just passed 400 people altogether who have tested positive for coronavirus, but at least 358 of them have recovered. There have also been 45 hospitalizations and 10 deaths.
"We anticipate there will be rising cases," said Dunleavy. "It is really important to remember that when all of us across this nation start to restrict our movements and restrict businesses and schools, that was to build up our healthcare capacity. We always knew that you can't avoid the virus because there is no vaccination and our antivirals are not to be to the level that we need them at this point."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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