(Image source from: cnbc.com)

President Donald Trump shared some guidelines in the daily White House press conference saying that the state governors will have complete authority to revive the U.S economy with a staggered three stage reopening of the states after the coronavirus shutdown.

Trump stated that the prolonged shutdown of the country is not something they can afford and will impact the overall economy for the worse.

During the press conference, Trump said that they don’t plan on reopening the country all at once but in a more systematic and gradual way.

Trump stated saying, “A prolonged lockdown combined with a forced economic depression would inflict an immense and wide-ranging toll on public health.” He believes that the same will contribute to the increased rate of drug abuse, alcohol abuse, suicides and other chronic mental and physical health conditions.

According to the new federal guidelines, the stated have been recommended with a 14-days downward trajectory in the covid-19 cases before thinking about opening the economy with the three stage process.

The document shared lays out the plans that Trump has made for opening up the businesses in the states that have been deeply affected by this global pandemic. These decisions have been laid out by Trump even though the same are made by the state authorities and not the federal government.

The guidelines further report that before any hospitals are reopened, it is extremely important for them to have a robust testing program with the antibody tests, especially for the healthcare workers.

States should have sufficient supplies and resources to test people showcasing symptoms. In addition to that, contact tracing capabilities should also be improved. The healthcare facilities should also be able to provide their frontline workers with the necessary protective gear that they need, in case there is a resurgence of the coronavirus.

The document clarifies that the recommendations are going to be implemented based on the governor’s decision from each state. It is the governors who have the final authority to open the states.

In the first phase of the opening, groups of more than 10 people should be avoided to prevent reintroduction of the infection. In addition to that, it is important to cut out and minimise the non-essential travel, telework should be the encourage mode of work and common spaces in the offices should be closed off.

The schools are going to remain closed under the first phase. Some of the other public places like theatres, stadiums, restaurants and such might be opened with strict social distancing rules.

The hospitals which have been overburdened with the Covid-19 cases can again resume with a few elective surgeries. Gyms can reopen with following of the safety protocols. Bars, on the other hand, are going to remain closed.

The second phase of the opening is application for the states which have shown no evidence of rebound cases. In such areas, guidelines restrict the presence of no more than 50 people at a time. Some of the non-essential travel can resume and a few of the schools and youth camps can be operational again.

The last and the third phase is where the restrictions are taken off. The same will allow unrestrictive staffing of work venues.

Officials from the White House have reported that all of these guidelines have been reported and structured after discussions with top doctors who are working in the Covid-19 taskforce.

Trump is working ahead to recover the U.S economy that has left millions of people jobless because of the covid-19 pandemic. Over 20 million people in the U.S have filed for unemployment benefits in just the last month. To top that off, 90% of the country is under stay at home orders.

Trump reported on Wednesday that some of the states that have lower number of infections are likely going to resume their operation sooner than the states that have been the worst hit.

The White House has also reported that every single governor is going to read through the guidelines and then impose the final decision on the reopening of the economy and shutdown which have been layered into different sections for a staggered re-emergence instead of opening everything at one go.

By Somapika Dutta