Today’s update discusses:

• call for blood donations from recovered COVID-19 patients
• Indiana’s PPE Marketplace
• statewide reopening of places of worship

HEALTH

• Indiana residents who have recovered from COVID-19 are being encouraged to donate blood for research purposes. The Indiana University School of Medicine has been asking for blood donations that it will use to improve testing, develop treatments, and better understand complications caused by the virus. Indiana Biobank considers residents who had contracted the virus as recovered if they have been symptom free for 28 days or have negative results from a nasal or oral swab test.

RESOURCES

• The state’s personal protective equipment (“PPE”) marketplace opened today. Officials hope this marketplace will be especially helpful for small businesses, but to be eligible to participate, businesses must meet certain requirements. Small businesses must have 150 or fewer employees, a reopening plan that requires use of PPE to reopen, and be in a qualifying industry: restaurant, retail, personal services, and some office environments. If eligible, PPE provided includes masks, face shields, and hand sanitizer.

SOCIAL LIFE

• Governor Holcomb announced last week that places of worship may resume normal services statewide beginning last Friday, despite the fact that other places likely to attract a crowd are only gradually opening every few weeks through July. During his briefings this week, the Governor stated that he believes leaders of religious entities will be most likely to look after their flock and follow COVID-19 safety guidelines. Governor Holcomb’s hope is that houses of worship will act as a control group to give officials a better idea if the state can manage opening other areas for bigger crowds in the upcoming weeks. While places of worship may resume in-person services, they still must abide by the 25-person recommended cap on social gatherings.