(Indianapolis, IN) - LaPorte County and much of northern Indiana are now Code Red because of rising COVID-19 cases.

According to the Indiana State Department of Health, the seven-day positivity rate in La Porte County is now above 17-percent.

Close to 20-percent of the people tested for the virus over the past seven days have turned up positive in Porter and Starke counties. The positivity rate in St. Joseph is just above 16-percent.

Hospitals throughout the area are reporting to be at or near capacity in bed space due to the rise in COVID-19 related hospitalizations.