JUST IN:  UPDATES FROM THE “REOPEN EVANSVILLE TASK FORCE”

JUST IN:  UPDATES FROM THE “REOPEN EVANSVILLE TASK FORCE”

• Large Gatherings – On Monday, October 19^th, any gathering (inside the city limits only) of over 125 will need to have an approved health & safety plan approved by the Vanderburgh County Health Department. Here is the link to the form: https://vanderburghhealth.org/event-review/. Why 125? Local and state health officials agreed that was a manageable figure for contact tracing. Obviously, it is subject to change depending on continued COVID-19 trends. Please note that the order currently does not impact church services or private businesses. It is meant to address social gatherings.
• Targeted Outreach – Based on contact tracing data and the District 10 report, the Vanderburgh County Health Department and the Task Force are proactively reaching out to specific industry clusters to meet their COVID-19 related needs and ensure a direct line of communication. These relationships and lines of communication are incredibly important for contact tracing purposes.
• Restaurant Town Hall – Early in the pandemic, workshops with industry groups were helpful, particularly with local restaurants and bars. These peer groups will continue to be developed through a partnership between local economic development organizations and the City of Evansville. The Chamber of Commerce of Southwest Indiana, Small Business Development Center, and the City of Evansville will be hosting a Town Hall event on Friday, October 30 for local restaurants and bars.

Register: https://www.facebook.com/events/352743216040758

• PPE / Testing – The Task Force continues to assist local organizations with PPE needs. 30,000 disposable masks were delivered last week. As for testing, both Deaconess and Ascension St. Vincent have the testing capacity, along with the Optum Testing Site at CK Newsome. Anyone can register at www.lhi.care/covidtesting or by calling 888-634-1116.
• Food Security Commission – One of the takeaways from the pandemic is the need to coordinate our community food resources and organizations more efficiently, thus a Food Security Commission is being developed via city code. More to come, but we also encourage everyone to spread the word about the Feed Evansville initiative, which is always in need of volunteers. Get involved at https://www.facebook.com/feedEVV/.
• State Assistance – The Mayor’s Office is in discussion with the Governor’s Office on many pandemic-related issues. Everything from enhanced contact tracing at the local/regional level, additional enforcement support from the ATC/Fire Marshall to ways that our health departments in Southwest Indiana can coordinate more efficiently on a regional level are top of mind. The strong line of communication will continue as the state is ready and willing to support locals as much as possible.
• Medical Advisory Group – We cannot thank our health and medical professionals enough! Deaconess, Ascension St. Vincent, and the Health Department have been great partners throughout the pandemic, particularly when our local officials are making decisions impacting the community.