Indianapolis officials still are evaluating the Marion County COVID-19 numbers and have not yet made a decision on whether to lift additional restrictions by July Fourth, Marion County Public Health Department director Dr. Virginia Caine said Tuesday.
While in the past Caine had mentioned thresholds she’d like to see the county achieve before fully reopening, Tuesday she said she will focus on the overall picture in addition to specific numbers.
“It’s less about the goal posts and more about determining a level of protection that will keep our community safe and prevent outbreaks,” she said. “We’re not quite there yet in terms of making that decision today.”
For now, many of those numbers look good.
The county’s positivity rate has been below Caine’s gold standard threshold of 5% since May and is currently 2.4%. Cases have fallen to an average of around 36 per day. Deaths have dropped significantly, as have hospital admissions. Emergency departments currently see about 23 people a day for COVID-19-related complaints.
But the picture turns less rosy when health officials look at vaccination rates.
