Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb has officially signed an executive order mandating facemasks statewide.
This mask mandate officially goes into effect on Monday, July 27th, and will continue until at least Wednesday, August 26th.
This means anyone 8 years old and older must wear a face-covering in:
-Public indoor spaces and commercial entities
-While using public transportation or other vehicles services such as a taxi or rideshare
-Outdoor public spaces when social distancing cannot be maintained
Exceptions to this mandate will be made for medical purposes, disabilities, exercising, and when eating and drinking.
When school starts, masks will be required for third grade and above, as well as staff, faculty, volunteers, and anyone else in the schools. They are also required for all co-curricular and extra-curricular activities, except for strenuous physical activity.
The mask (or other face-covering) can be factory-made, hand-sewn, or made out of household items like scarfs, bandanas, or t-shirts.
All masks must cover the mouth and nose.
State and local health departments will be responsible for enforcing the mandate by educating the public about the importance of coverings.
This executive order does not require any criminal penalties.
Holcomb has used data to drive decisions since the state’s first case of the novel coronavirus in early March. At this time, the state faces:
- An increase in overall hospitalizations from approximately 600 a day near the end of June to approximately 800 now
- The highest number of cases in a single day with 1,011 Hoosiers reported positive today
- A rise in COVID-19 positivity across the state from a low of 3.6% a month ago to nearly double that percentage now
- Some counties, which early on had minimal positive cases in some instances, now reporting regular double-digit positive cases
Local governments may impose more restrictive guidelines.
