https://www.yahoo.com/gma/state-gove...opstories.html
State governors taking lead on coronavirus precautions as federal government works to define plan
As the coronavirus outbreak continues and the federal government scrambles to come up with a national plan to keep people safe, governors are stepping up.
And health experts have said that their actions, such as shutting down business and calling for self-isolation, have proved crucial at helping contain the outbreak.
Governors of states with the most cases, such as Washington's Jay Inslee, New York's Andrew Cuomo and California's Gavin Newsom, made the right decision by enacting these policies, according to John Auerbach, CEO of Trust for America's Health, a public health advocacy group.
Marianne Udow-Phillips, executive director of the Center for Health and Research Transformation at the University of Michigan, said the governors' messages stick with the public in a way those from the federal government may not.
"Governors hear directly from health care providers, the local business community, school leaders and citizens at large," she said in an email. "They are deeply attuned to local and statewide impacts."
Joshua Epstein, a professor of epidemiology at the NYU School of Global Public Health, stressed that while the states are taking a lead in their regions, it's important that there be consistency with their coronavirus actions. He noted that New York, Connecticut and New Jersey's joint announcement to close non-essential stores was a smart move.
"They don't want people running across state lines to buy goods, and they've worked to keep policies the same," he said.