Attorney General Curtis Hill today urged Hoosiers to visit IndianaEquifaxClaims.com and file a claim for a restitution payment in light of the massive 2017 Equifax data breach. The last day for Hoosiers to file claims is Dec. 16, but Attorney General Hill said Hoosiers should file their claims as soon as possible.

The Equifax data breach occurred from May 2017 to July 2017 and impacted approximately 147 million Americans, including roughly 3.9 million Indiana residents. The breach compromised Social Security numbers, dates of birth, addresses and, in some cases, driver’s license numbers and credit card information. Attorney General Hill sued Equifax following the data breach and secured a settlement with the company, which agreed to pay the state of Indiana $19.5 million. 

Indiana was one of two states that opted not to participate in a multistate settlement with Equifax in July 2019. Instead, the Office of the Indiana Attorney General opted to file its own lawsuit against the company. As a result, Indiana received more money than any of the states that participated in the multistate settlement, which distributed $175 million among the participating states.

All the nearly 4 million Indiana residents impacted by the data breach are eligible for a portion of the $19.5 million Equifax paid the state of Indiana. Many eligible Hoosiers have yet to file claims on IndianaEquifaxClaims.com, Attorney General Hill said.

“We structured our settlement with Equifax so that we could give Hoosiers the opportunity to claim money they may have lost due to Equifax’s failure to protect personal information,” Attorney General Hill said. “That money is just waiting to be claimed. Now, it’s up to Hoosiers to visit IndianaEquifaxClaims.com and secure their rightful portion of the settlement.”

Attorney General Hill encourages all Hoosiers who were Indiana residents between March 2017 and July 2017 to visit IndianaEquifaxClaims.com and enter the required information to file a claim. You will be able to select whether you would like your payment digitally or in the form of a paper check. Payments will be distributed after the Dec. 16 claim deadline.

Visit IndianaEquifaxClaims.com for more information about filing a claim and for answers to frequently asked questions about the settlement.

Indiana Department of Natural Resources properties has been a safe place for Hoosiers to get fresh air, stretch their legs, and seek solace throughout 2020. But we have had to temporarily suspend some services for the safety of our guests and staff along the way.

Out of an abundance of caution, we are modifying all dining for the seven restaurants at our State Park Inns to carry-out only through Dec. 15.

Thanksgiving meals will be carry-out only for inn guests. Reservation holders will be notified.

“We apologize for the inconvenience,” the DNR noted in a press release. “If any additional alterations are needed they will be posted to the DNR COVID-19 Response page: on.IN.gov/DNRcovid19.

Hoosiers have gathered at our tables for Thanksgiving dinner for more than 60 years, and we look forward to restarting this annual tradition in 2021.

Similar to the spring school turn to virtual education, once again schools will be offering meals to students who are currently back at home with virtual learning. 

Washington County Health Officer Dr. Jeff Morgan ordered schools to move junior and senior high school classes online after the state designated the county as “Orange”.

Morgan said the elementary students could continue in-person. 

Salem and East Washington schools sent everyone home. West Washington is allowing the elementary students to continue while the older grades went home to take virtual classes. 

Salem and East Washington will be providing meals for those students. 

West Washington said it was making meals available to only those students who needed them. 

According to Joni Muchler, WW School Nutrition Director, “Unfortunately, we have not had a good response with the meals we have offered so far for our Virtual Wednesday learning days, participation has been extremely low.  So, we are not doing meal pickups. We do have some of our higher need students we are bringing in so they are getting meals and extra help.”

Muchler said anyone who contacts the schools will be taken care of.

She said two groups within the school were making food baskets for some students. 

Salem is distributing meals for students 18 and under who are not attending school in person. 

A second distribution day will be Wednesday, Nov. 18

Meal pickup will be at the Bradie M. Shrum Elementary gym doors on Wednesday from 11am – 12:30 pm (3 breakfast / 3 lunch)

Administration requests those picking up food please stay in their vehicle.

Children do not need to be present and another person may be designated to pick up meals.

All East Washington Students will be able to pick up free breakfasts and lunches from 9:45-11:00 a.m. on the following days: November 18, 19, 20, 23 and the 24th. 

Elementary students can pick up meals at the elementary and middle and high students at Eastern High School.

For more information, contact the schools at the following numbers:

• West Washington Administration – 812-755-4872
• East Washington Administration – 812-967-3926
• Salem Schools Administration – 812-883-4437

Today, U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) discussed COVID-19 vaccine developments and reinforced the need to pass a targeted relief package for Hoosiers.

“I too want to celebrate American ingenuity and recognize the achievements of these two pharmaceutical companies that recently announced the development of, it appears, highly effective vaccines to the COVID-19 virus. They of course in the coming weeks will be seeking formal approval for emergency use from the FDA. And there are some other drugs online that are notable as well. Eli Lilly, out of Indianapolis, Indiana has a drug that is targeted towards those who are most at risk of contracting the COVID-19 virus and it’s already been approved by the FDA. All of this is possible because of our innovators, our frontline scientists, and our incredible university system. But the Trump administration is also to be commended for its Operation Warp Speed, finding a new way to do business, and Republicans in the U.S. Senate, led by Roy Blunt, who helped author this initiative in the CARES Act. So I’m very proud of my colleagues and we need to build on that success here in Washington,” said Senator Young.

“… we as legislators need to build on our CARES Act success by passing the next round of assistance. Small business assistance is especially important as we hundreds and thousands of businesses having permanently closed on account of this pandemic. They require additional help. I have been talking about this for months and I’ll continue to talk about this,” Senator Young continued.