Governor Inslee Extends Reopening Pause

Governor Jay Inslee announced Tuesday that he will be extending his 'pause' of the Safe Start Reopening Plan through July 28th.

Inslee said, "So with the spread of this virus, we need to continue to pause the reopening of our economy in further phases. I announced this almost two weeks ago and we will need to continue the pause as we continue to study the upward trend in the cases. So this pause is going to continue at least until July 28th."

Inslee stated that the metrics his administration will be most concerned with over these next few days and weeks are the positivity rate, case count, and hospitalization rate.

"We have to find somewhere to break that chain of looming disaster. That's a certainty. Now how we do that, and how fast we do that, is a matter of just judgement and looking at these metrics on a daily basis." Inslee continued, "So what I'm telling you is there is a possibility, that is not insignificant, that we will have to take some further actions."

Inslee said the status quo is very dangerous right now. Although the state hasn't seen a dramatic spike in cases like Florida, Arizona or California, cases in Washington State have steadily been on the rise.

Inslee compared the situation among the states to drowning. The governor said, if you're standing on a beach with the tide rolling in, although it might take a while you can still drown just the same as if a large wave hit. Inslee claimed a steady rise of cases in Washington State, like the tide, will still lead to disaster if unchecked.

The governor also added that a solution to the problem may need to come within the next few days to avoid further actions, and that people should not be surprised if some restrictions are re-imposed.