The city of Los Angeles and Los Angeles County extended their stay at home order to May 15 with the possibility of going past that date on April 11. However, on April 16, President Donald Trump and his administration released a suggested plan for governors to begin reopening their states and economy.

“We’re starting our life again,” Trump said during his daily press briefing on April 16. “We’re starting rejuvenation of our economy again. This is a gradual process.”

Trump’s plan includes three phases of eased guidelines that governors can begin following as the numbers of COVID-19 cases go down. These eased guidelines are set to begin in states where the transmission is low and later for states that have higher numbers of cases. In a video conference to governors, Trump did say that the governors are able to make their own decisions and that these were simply suggestions.

“[The guidelines] make clear that the return to normalcy will be a far longer process than Trump initially envisioned, with federal officials warning that some social distancing measures may need to remain in place through the end of the year to prevent a new outbreak,” Time writer Zeke Miller wrote in his article.

The first phase includes the reopening of all retail shops and other businesses that enforce strict social distancing, avoid gatherings of 10 or more and have no nonessential travel. The second phase would allow gatherings of fewer than 50 people who maximize social distancing. It would also allow travel to resume as normal. The third phase is the return to normalcy. The White House website states this plan is for states with low transmission rates and strong testing. 

“These guidelines will allow healthy Americans to safely return to work as conditions allow while protecting seniors and other vulnerable Americans,” the White House wrote.

However, many experts and scientists including Dr. Debraph Brix and Dr. Anthony Fauci have said staying at home is the new normal for the foreseeable future as there is the possibility of a resurgence of the virus. In a Pew Research study, it was found that two out of three people are worried that the White House guidelines could speed up the spreading of the virus.

“I will just remind the American people again, this is a highly contagious virus. Social gatherings, coming together, there is always a chance that an asymptomatic person can spread the virus unknowingly,” Birx said in the Daily Press Briefing. 

However, Trump is optimistic and says that life will return as normal with people in football stadiums and restaurants. 

“All of American society is engaged and mobilized in the war against the invisible enemy. While we must remain vigilant, it is clear that our aggressive strategy is working,” Trump said.