No more COVID-19 lockdowns expected in Michigan, Whitmer says

On Tuesday, the state of Michigan's COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in many regards - including ending restaurant rules and outdoor capacity limits - and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says she doesn't foresee the state returning to any of those lockdowns.

The state made its first of many long-awaited changes to its COVID-19 guidelines on Tuesday as it entered the second step of the state's updated "MI Vacc To Normal" plan.

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Tuesday marks the first day you can legally stay at your favorite bar or restaurant until 2 a.m. as restaurant rules were relaxed. Additionally, if you have a family event and want to take in a baseball game, say goodbye to those capacity limits.

"This is the first day of this phase. In this phase, we have been able to get out of most of the protocols we've had," Whitmer said on Tuesday.

By Independence Day, all of the state's COVID restrictions will be over. And Whitmer says there will likely be no going back.

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"At this juncture, when you listen to the CDC - and we had a talk with Dr. Fauci earlier today - there is not an indication that that that's something that t is likely to happen," Whitmer said.

However, that doesn't mean we're out of the woods. The germ continues to mutate and is still deadly but Whitmer said things are good enough that things can start to reopen.

"We feel very confident that we are really on the other - almost on the other side. I hate to say where out of the tunnel because we're still in it - but we have the tools to stay safe now," Whitmer said.

To read all of the restrictions that have been lifted, check out this story.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer speaks at Dow Diamond in Midland to announce a rollback of COVID-19 restrictions