COVID-19 UPDATE - New state requirements

Friday, November 20, 2020
Indiana State Department of Health

New COVID-19 Response Requirements

In effect: November 15 – December 12, 2020

Executive Order 20-48 was signed by Gov. Eric Holcomb on November 13.

The order came as the number of COVID-19 positive cases are skyrocketing across the state. The 7-day positivity rate is currently 12.2%, up a full 7.9% from the day Stage 5 was announced in Indiana.

Holcomb announced, “Rather than doing the things that we had been doing that allowed us to open our restaurants and shops and museums and attractions to full capacity – while maintaining social distancing and wearing mask coverings -- too many have said, “we’ll just ride it out and if I get it, so be it.”

“Stage 5 has been viewed by some as a reason to return to the days before we ever heard of the words “COVID-19” or “pandemic” in a modern-day sense… So, beginning this weekend, there will be no more Stage 5. The Back on Track plan, with stages, was for sure helpful for us to help regain our footing and our economy. But now we must focus on how we’ll get to the light at the end of this tunnel, and there is light at the end of this tunnel.”

Like many states across the country, Holcomb said Indiana is amid a second surge.

Indiana State Department of Health

According to Executive Order 20-48:

All Hoosiers are required to maintain social distancing of at least 6 feet in public spaces, whether inside or outside, and especially when you are with others who are not members of your immediate household. All general requirements are according to the conditions we’ve already outlined in previous executive orders.

Businesses are required to place signage at their public, and employee entrances notifying all that face coverings are necessary. Businesses should admit only those who wear face coverings, practice social distancing, and follow requirements when counties are Orange and Red.

All customers in restaurants and bars, and nightclubs are required to be seated when receiving service, 6 feet of distancing between non-household parties is required, including tables and bar seating.

Hoosiers 65 and older and those with other known high-risk medical conditions should remain vigilant about protecting their exposure to COVID. That means Hoosiers in contact with individuals 65 and older and those with known high-risk medical conditions should consider suspending in-person visits, as hard as that is, as this surge continues to crest.

Also, the Indiana Department of Homeland Security and the Alcohol and Tobacco Commission, together with local partners and citizen input, will continue to check businesses for occupancy, social distancing, face-covering use, and other executive order components to assure compliance.

With the holiday season upon us, Holcomb urges people to hold smaller holiday gatherings in 2020, “keep ‘em shorter maybe than normal and wear face coverings. Consider limiting your gatherings to immediate household members only or your identified small social pod. Maybe even gather outside, weather permitting. You’ve heard me say so many times that the virus is often spread when family members or friends let their guards down in social situations and take off their face-coverings or don’t socially distance and stay in close quarters inside for long periods of time. The holiday season is a time that reminds us to be thankful and to have hope. My hope is maybe this year it’s our actions that can be the best gift we can give to one another.”

Officials confirm more than 250 COVID test sites available throughout Indiana, many of which are operating by the state free of charge.

“And, lastly, let me just say – let me repeat myself, get tested,” said Holcomb. “Testing helps us know the local spread rate, trace it, and isolate it. Slow that spread.”

Governor quarantines due to COVID-19 exposure

Several members of Governor Holcomb’s security detail tested positive for COVID-19. As a result, on November 17, Indiana State Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Kris Box advised the Governor and First Lady Janet Holcomb to quarantine because they are considered close contacts. The couple will be tested later this week.

Color coding COVID-19

ISDH

The ISDH’s color-coded county weekly scoring map provides data for officials and residents to make the best decisions possible to protect their communities and limit the spread of COVID-19. The color codes are determined by the 7-day moving average of the all tests positivity rate, calculated by taking the total number of positive tests and dividing by the total tests administered :

BLUE No points =Less than 5%, with less than 10 new cases per 100,000

YELLOW 1 point = 5.0-9.9%, with 10-99 new cases

ORANGE 2 points = 10-14.9%, with 100 to 199 new cases

RED 3 points=15% or greater, with 200 or more new cases

The weekly county status scores and maps are updated by the ISDH once a week on Wednesdays at noon. The weekly update reflects data from the previous Monday through Sunday. Please note that this calculation is lagged by six days to ensure complete testing information has been received.

Indiana State Department of Health

Social Bubbles?

According to the ISDH, a social bubble is a small group of people who socialize only with each other and gather only when sticking to the same prevention measures. While a social bubble can give you more in-person interactions, it doesn’t mean socializing with everyone you know.

Even with steps to stay safe, meeting with others in your social bubble increases your risk for getting COVID-19, so everyone in your small group must remain at least 6-feet apart and wears a mask (even when outdoors), and practices good hand hygiene.

Log onto https://www.coronavirus.in.gov/ to learn more about the Indiana State Health Department’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic since March.

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