Gov. Holcomb: Reopening of Indiana amid COVID-19 ‘won’t be flipping a light switch’
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — In a news conference Wednesday, Gov. Eric Holcomb says Hoosiers are not out of the woods when it comes to fighting the coronavirus.
But, he said, he is looking ahead to the day when he can reopen Indiana.
“It will be a rolling reopen. It won’t be all at once. It won’t be flipping a light switch,” Holcomb said.
The governor said the decision on when to reopen Indiana will be data-driven. He said while it feels like Indiana takes a step back each day in regard to positive cases and deaths, he reiterated the state is actually moving forward and is on the right path. When the numbers warrant, the economy will start to come to life, but at a new normal.
“We want to make sure that employees have a very high level of confidence about the workplace. We’re going to be looking at a steady, sustained decline in those numbers. We’ll be looking at our supply chain. Is it sufficient?” Holcomb said.
Holcomb also said he has been talking to Kentucky, Ohio, Illinois and other nearby states on when to reopen. He wants to make sure the decision moves the Midwest forward instead of setting the region back.
“I want to make sure that we all know, because we are neighborly and share a border, and for every action, sometimes there’s an equal or greater reaction. And so, we don’t want to, we’re not going to act alone in this. We are all in this together,” Holcomb said.
The governor said he expects to unveil more details about a reopening plan on Monday.
President Donald Trump has said he will likely talk about reopening plans with governors on Thursday.