A state with a libertarian streak runs an experiment in just how relaxed you can be about coronavirus.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.—Carsten Salon in Phoenix is still open for business, though it’s only scheduling select clients with a curtailed staff of three stylists. “You cannot stand six feet away,” its owner told me over the phone after finishing up with a client on Wednesday morning. “I can either sit at home, or I can come here.”
North Scottsdale Pawn, which has been operating since 1966, has seen fewer customers than normal, “but we’re open for business,” I was told when I called after they opened at 9 a.m.
Pawn shops and salons are considered among the essential Arizona public services allowed to stay open in the Covid-19 pandemic. So are golf courses, dry cleaners, nail salons and spas.
The statewide executive order that went into effect Tuesday imploring citizens to stay home until April 30 is among the most relaxed in the nation. In the national argument about saving lives versus saving livelihoods, the Grand Canyon State is ground zero for the open-door approach, keeping businesses as active as possible while leaving it up to citizens to police their own health.
As other states have put aggressive lockdowns into place and ordered individuals to stay in their homes, Arizona has taken a more incremental approach. It was on March 20 that two-term Republican Governor and former businessman Doug Ducey first ordered restaurants, bars, and gyms to close—but only in counties that had known cases of the virus. (The same day, neighboring California, which had already told restaurants to close statewide, told citizens to stay home for the indefinite future.)
Last night, Ducey ordered a statewide order to shelter in place, but framed it as a matter of “personal responsibility” rather than a mandate. The order leaves the option for huge swaths of the business community to remain open as usual. Nationally, Arizona, along with Florida, have come under fire from public health officials for bringing up the rear on the national response, putting their orders in place late and loosely. (Florida Governor Ron DeSantis issued his statewide order on Tuesday).
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Pawn shops and salons are considered among the essential Arizona public services allowed to stay open in the Covid-19 pandemic. So are golf courses, dry cleaners, nail salons and spas. https://t.co/fS1fISsV0b
— POLITICO (@politico) April 2, 2020
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