Governor Eric J. Holcomb announced the majority of the state will remain in Stage 4.5 of the Back On Track Indiana plan through at least July 31.
Elkhart County will remain in Stage 4 as it has for the last two weeks. Local governments may impose more restrictive guidelines.
“As we actively track our health indicators and monitor the data, we continue to see the need to maintain our current levels found on Indiana’s Back On Track roadmap,” Gov. Holcomb said. “By exercising caution, good hygiene, wearing masks and engaging in proper physical distancing, we can all help slow the spread of COVID-19 so when prudent, we can further reopen our state for business.”
Gov. Holcomb has used data to drive decisions since the state’s first case of the novel coronavirus in early March and he continues to do so as the state continues a sector-by-sector reset. The state will continue to monitor and respond to these four guiding principles:
· The number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients statewide has decreased for 14 days
· The state retains its surge capacity for critical care beds and ventilators
· The state retains its ability to test all Hoosiers who are COVID-19 symptomatic as well as health care workers, first responders, and frontline employees
· Health officials have systems in place to contact all individuals who test positive for COVID-19 and expand contact tracing
The state has updated its requirements for events that are permitted according to Stage 4.5. Events that expect more than 250 attendees are now required to submit a safety plan to their local health department for approval prior to opening. This is effective July 23.
Other social gatherings and meetings remain limited to no more than 250 people.
To learn more about the different stages and the associated dates to get a better understanding about where we’re going as a state, click here to see the full plan: BackOnTrack.in.gov
The Governor signed an executive order implementing these changes to the Back on Track Indiana roadmap. The executive order can be found here: https://www.in.gov/gov/2384.htm
More information may be found at the ISDH website at coronavirus.in.gov and the CDC website at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.
