(WXYZ) — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer blasted the idea of herd immunity against COVID-19 during a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
Whitmer said the herd immunity philosophy is "inhumane," and said it goes against recommendations from health experts.
It comes after State Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey told MLive that he thinks some form of herd immunity should happen.
“I’m also a big believer that there’s an element of herd immunity that needs to take place," he told MLive on Oct. 10.
Two days later, a group of public health experts sent a letter saying that if herd immunity were to begin after 80% of the state's population has been infected, as some people believe, millions more in the state would have to contract COVID-19. According to the health experts, that would mean 30,000 more deaths.
Whitmer said she would continue to make decisions based on the facts, evidence, and recommendations from public health experts.
Additional Coronavirus information and resources:
Click here for a page with resources including a COVID-19 overview from the CDC, details on cases in Michigan, a timeline of Governor Gretchen Whitmer's orders since the outbreak, coronavirus' impact on Southeast Michigan, and links to more information from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the CDC and the WHO.
View a global coronavirus tracker with data from Johns Hopkins University.
See complete coverage on our Coronavirus Continuing Coverage page.
Visit our The Rebound Detroit, a place where we are working to help people impacted financially from the coronavirus. We have all the information on everything available to help you through this crisis and how to access it.