Governor Won't Limit Large Public Gatherings But Will Require Hoosiers to Mask Up For the "Foreseeable Future"

STATEHOUSE -- Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb says a surge in coronavirus cases isn't an argument for retightening restrictions on large gatherings -- but it does drive home the need to mask up.

Holcomb lifted most remaining restrictions, including capacity limits on bars and restaurants, on September 26, about the same time virus cases began rising again. Indiana hospitalizations and the virus positivity rate have risen more than 60-percent since then. Holcomb says those surges are concerning, though he notes Indiana's not alone: cases are on the rise in all but six states. But Holcomb says unlike the first wave of the pandemic, when many businesses were ordered to close, hospitals have the capacity to handle it. Instead of church groups sewing masks to try to fill the need, Holcomb says the state has the protective gear it needs -- the state health department just shipped two-million masks to nursing homes.

And Holcomb says unlike the start of the pandemic, the best way to slow the spread is clear. He says businesses which have emphasized masks and social distancing have handled increased traffic without incident. He notes the Colts have played three home games with thousands of fans and no reported infections. And while there have been cases in schools, Holcomb credits strong precautions with keeping those infections limited. At least a quarter of Indiana schools have had no infections, and those which have have an average of just three cases apiece so far.

Holcomb says the rise in cases has come from people letting their guard down. He says it's often not weddings which become spreader events, but the family gathering in the backyard afterward.

State Health Commissioner Kristina Box is still quarantined with what she says is a mild case of the virus. She says her illness shows that masks and social distancing do work, not that they don't. She says she's one of those who got careless about precautions within her family, and caught the virus from her grandson after two workers at his daycare tested positive. At work, where she was more diligent, she says neither Holcomb nor anyone else has been infected. And she praises the day care workers for isolating as soon as they got sick, and limiting the spread there.

Holcomb says a statewide mask order is likely to stay in place for the foreseeable future. The order has already been renewed once, and Holcomb says while he looks forward to the day it's lifted, the surge means it's likely to be extended again when it expires in three weeks:

Both Holcomb's reelection opponents have criticized the order. Democrat Woody Myers says the order is useless because it lacks enforcement provisions, and says the state should also resume capacity restrictions on bars and restaurants. Libertarian Don Rainwater has questioned whether masks are effective, and says there shouldn't be a mask order at all.