Unclear How Indiana Will Enforce Stay-At-Home Order, Goes Into Effect At Midnight

A statewide order for Hoosiers to stay at home unless conducting essential business goes into effect at midnight.

But it’s unclear how that order will be enforced.

Gov. Eric Holcomb says his stay-at-home order is not meant to be a “hammer” but to emphasize the need to socially distance and self-isolate, thus curbing the spread of COVID-19.

“[The police] are not going to be pulling people over going to and from work," Holcomb says. "If we get into a situation where someone is flaunting, we’ll have to address that on a case-by-case basis.”

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The state has a hotline for businesses to ask questions about the stay-at-home order. But that’s not meant for employees – even those, Holcomb says, who think they and their company should temporarily close under the order.

“And so first, go to your employer … show them what you know, if there’s some misunderstanding," Holcomb says. "And if that doesn’t work then we do need to know about it. And we’re going to help try to resolve it, as well.”

But Holcomb didn’t indicate how people should report such a situation.

The stay-at-home hotline for Hoosier businesses is 877-820-0890 or email at covidresponse@iedc.in.gov.

A list of what are considered "essential" businesses under the order is here.

Contact Brandon at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.

This is a rapidly evolving story, and we are working hard to bring you the most up-to-date information. However, we recommend checking the websites of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the Indiana State Department of Health for the most recent numbers of COVID-19 cases.