Michigan is joining a seven-state Midwest coalition to closely coordinate the reopening of the regional economy when the threat of the coronavirus subsides, but it won't be a one-size-fits all strategy, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Friday.

Whitmer said Michigan's more than 2,000 COVID-19 death count and number of infections — the third highest in the country — has created a "unique crisis" that warrants "a unique solution."

The governor said Friday that she hopes "to have some relaxing" of her stay-at-home order on May 1.

Whitmer announced Thursday that she's partnering on a regional strategy for resuming economic activity with Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.

"We're going to work regionally, we're going to share intelligence and we're going to make informed decisions," Whitmer said Friday morning in an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America." "But it doesn't mean that each of us is going to dictate the exact same steps."

The regional coalition of governors signaled they would work to phase-in various sectors of their state economies.

"This doesn't mean our economy will reopen all at once, or that every state will take the same steps at the same time," the governors said in a joint statement. "But close coordination will ensure we get this right. Over time, people will go back to work, restaurants will reopen, and things will go back to normal. We look forward to working together as one region to tackle this challenge together."

The seven governors said their criteria for loosening stay-at-home orders will examine hospital system capacity, "sustained control of the rate of new infections and hospitalizations," a better ability to test for and trace COVID-19 infections and workplace social distancing best practices.

""Our number one priority when analyzing when best to reopen our economy is the health and safety of our citizens," the governors said. "We will make decisions based on facts, science, and recommendations from experts in health care, business, labor, and education."

The coalition of Midwest states mirrors similar coordinated efforts among Northeast and West Coast states to resume work in certain industries and daily activities.

The Midwest governors announced the partnership hours before President Donald Trump outlined his administration's plans for easing social distancing requirements and resuming normal economic activity.

Michigan Senate Republicans also rolled out their own proposal for how to gradually resume economic activity over a period of several months.

Crain's first reported Tuesday on Whitmer's involvement in talks with Pritzker about a regional strategy for reopening the economy of Great Lakes states. Holcomb said Tuesday he had been in talks with DeWine and Beshear about a coordinated reopening of neighboring economies.

The Detroit Regional Chamber praised the Midwest partnership between Michigan's Democratic governor and her counterparts from both political parties.

"In recent days, the partisan flavor of the actions to protect citizens from the global pandemic and significant economic impact has grown increasingly unfortunate," Detroit Chamber CEO Sandy Baruah said in a statement. "We applaud Governor Whitmer and her bi-partisan regional peers for working together to create a coordinated plan to safely and smartly re-start the economic engine of our region."