Gov. Roy Cooper is giving North Carolina its economic freedom, but with that comes much more.
Cooper announced Wednesday that the state will move to Phase 2 of the reopening schedule he set out last month. That likely will mean North Carolina restaurants and bars can operate at 50 percent capacity, the News & Observer reports. It also would allow limited opening of fitness centers, hair salons and other personal care services.
It’s a politically sound and economically sensible decision for the governor. As for public health? Like so much with COVID-19, there’s no way to know if moving to Phase 2 is a safe step or a leap too soon.
This much is certain: It’s up to North Carolinians now. The governor’s decision was not only about trying to revive a staggering economy. It was about shifting the responsibility of COVID-19 from the government to the people it serves.
That’s a politically sound path to take. While Cooper was in the mainstream when he first announced coronavirus restrictions, he’s been among the slowest to move his state out. That caution was warranted, but it’s led to a steady drip of complaints from Republican leaders, as well as impatience among business owners and fatigue from people who understand caution but want to make their own decisions about their lives. With COVID-19 numbers mostly leveling out or declining, it was time — politically and economically — to let that happen.
The decision also fits the ideological sensibilities of his state, which has long bristled at the heavy hand of government. While people overwhelmingly understood the need for initial measures to slow the spread of COVID-19, there was growing resistance to one-size-fits-all restrictions. North Carolinians wanted choice.
What will that choice look like? If you’re among a vulnerable population or live in a COVID-19 hot spot or just think the inside of a restaurant is still too risky, you can continue to avoid all the things the governor forbid until now. If you’re ready to mingle with the masses, you can do so — we hope at a safe social distance.
With that comes risk. Most businesses and retail stores will take measures to protect employees and customers, as thoughtful owners and managers always have. But some stores and companies will not. When businesses are left to their own devices, they sometimes cut corners and skirt the rules, because no one will get hurt.
That could be catastrophic with COVID-19, resulting in an infection regression that risks public health and economic damage. Cooper and county officials need to be vigilant about coronavirus violators, including restaurants and bars that decide to ignore the governor’s 50-percent capacity rules.
Cooper also needs to be ready to be wrong about Phase 2. If a new COVID-19 spike follows in parts of North Carolina, he’ll be faced with the exceedingly hard call to move backward, not forward, with the reopening. We hope that doesn’t happen, but states like Texas and Georgia hinted at a potential new COVID-19 surge a couple of weeks after making moves to reopen their economies. It’s too early to know what reopening means in those states and ours, but the governor can’t say there weren’t warning signs.
For now, however, North Carolina is getting the freedom many wanted. Our health – and our economy – are in our own hands now.
— The Charlotte Observer