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Whitmer: Detroit-area hospitals 'almost at capacity' with virus patients

Posted at 4:59 AM, Mar 25, 2020
and last updated 2020-03-25 04:59:27-04

LANSING (AP) — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is warning that a Detroit-area hospital system is “almost at capacity” treating people with the coronavirus.

The news came Tuesday as her stay-at-home order kicked in to reduce the spread.

The governor told WDET-FM that Beaumont Health, which has eight hospitals in Wayne and Oakland counties, is near capacity and “we have not seen the worse of it yet.”

Whitmer has barred employers from requiring workers to leave their homes unless necessary to protect life or conduct minimum basic operations. There are exceptions, including groceries.

Nearly 1,800 people have tested positive in Michigan. At least 24 have died.