By Thomas Samuel
TheStatehouseFile.com

INDIANAPOLIS— Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett is imposing tougher restrictions on businesses and social gatherings effective midnight Sunday and closing schools by the end of the month as the number of new cases of COVID-19 continues to spiral out of control.

Hogsett, joined by Dr. Virginia Caine, director of the Marion County Department of Health, announced the new restrictions Thursday in a virtual press conference and said that with the positivity rate soaring above 10% the actions are needed to prevent the pandemic from worsening.

“I take no joy in making these changes,” Hogsett said. “It’s heartbreaking for me as someone who loves this city and desperately wants to see a speedy recovery from the effects of this pandemic, but my heart also breaks every time I receive a report on the deaths of our neighbors who fall victim to this virus.”

Hogsett’s announcement follows Gov. Eric Holcomb’s news conference Wednesday when he issued new tougher restrictions because of the exponential rise in new cases of COVID-19. Much of the state is coded orange or red, which indicate high levels of virus spread.

The new restrictions for Indiana’s largest city come as the state has reached another peak in the number of cases of the highly contagious novel coronavirus. The Indiana Department of Health reported that 6,654 Hoosiers have been diagnosed with COVID-19, exceeding Wednesday’s record-setting number by more than 1,000 cases, for a total of 230,965.  In addition, 51 people have died from the disease for a total of 4,563.

Hogsett’s order for Marion County requires that bars return to 25% indoor capacity and will remain at 100% outdoor capacity while restaurants will also remain at 50% capacity.

Tables will only be allowed to seat parties of six or fewer instead of the current 10-person limit. All outdoor tents are required to only be two-sided to ensure that there are not gatherings within enclosed spaces. Live entertainment and music venues must be cleared out of all patrons or customers by midnight.

All gyms and fitness centers will return to 25% capacity. Funeral homes are required to return back to 50% capacity as well. All social gatherings are limited to 25 people.

Hogsett’s order also includes a new requirement—that people who want to visit an assisted living center indoors must have had a negative test for COVID-19 within the previous 72 hours.

In addition, all K-12 schools in the county will be required to revert to virtual instruction no later than Nov. 30. Schools do have the option to go virtual prior to the date given if they so choose. After that date, all extra-curricular activities and sporting events can only include participants, parents or legal guardians, and other support personnel. The order will remain in effect until Jan. 15.

“We did a fantastic job, from mid-August up to this point, but these last two weeks we’ve seen a substantial increase,” Caine said.

Hogsett and Holcomb have both stated that many of the new cases that have developed have been found to be directly related to smaller in-home gatherings in which people feel more comfortable and let their guard down. They have urged people to “scale down” Thanksgiving.

“There is no responsible way to pretend that this Thanksgiving and the ensuing holiday season that follows will in any way be normal,” Hogsett said. “I urge you to scale back Thanksgiving gatherings.”

He added, “Deciding to do this could truly be a life or death decision for those you love.”

Hogsett made an appeal to Congress to act to provide relief as was done earlier in the pandemic to provide assistance to businesses and communities that are suffering because of the pandemic.

FOOTNOTE: Thomas Samuel is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.