Page 6 - Robert Einterz News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

SOUTH BEND — Although more than a quarter of St. Joseph County residents are now fully vaccinated against COVID-19, officials are concerned about a “plateau” in the number of vaccinations as fewer people are signing up to receive their shot. Health department data reported 73,284 people in the county have been fully vaccinated as of Wednesday, with 98,902 having received their first dose. Two weeks ago, data showed nearly 60,000 county residents had been fully vaccinated, with just over 78,500 having received one dose. “This pandemic will go on as long as we choose it to g...

SOUTH BEND — The St. Joseph County Council voted Friday to override a veto from the county commissioners and extend an ordinance that allows fines for some violations of the county's mask order.  The council voted 7-1 to extend the enforcement mechanism until May 27, with Richard Pfeil joining the council’s six Democrats in supporting the measure. Republican Mark Telloyan voted against overriding the veto, while Republican Mark Root was not present at the meeting. The ordinance allows for fines to businesses that do not enforce the mask ordinance. The ordinance does not allow ind...

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana legislative negotiators have reached an agreement on limiting the authority of county or city health departments by allowing local elected officials to overturn orders or enforcement actions issued during emergencies. Republican supporters say the proposal is meant to provide a “check and balance” protecting the rights of business owners following complaints about COVID-19 orders closing or limiting businesses that have been imposed over the past year. The agreement released Tuesday requires any local public health order that is more stringent than one is...

Indiana’s statewide mask mandate is no more, but what that means for the daily life of Hoosiers isn’t as simple as it may seem in the language of the new executive order. Fewer than 10 states across the nation have rescinded mask requirements established at the start of the pandemic, and as of Tuesday, Indiana now stands among them. But with Gov. Eric Holcomb’s late March announcement that the NCAA National Championship game would mark the final day of the statewide rule came fine print that masks remain mandatory in some places, and are still recommended everywhere. Local gove...

Over 1.1 million Hoosiers have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus as of Friday, according to an Indiana State Department of Health dashboard. But according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, even fully vaccinated people should continue to wear masks in public, when gathering with unvaccinated people from more than one household and while visiting an unvaccinated person at high-risk of severe illness or death. That's in part because health experts are still learning exactly how and for how long vaccinations impact the spread of the virus. St. Joseph County Health Off...