The increase fell short of predictions from the National Retail Federation, the nation’s largest retail trade group, which had expected sales to rise between 3.6% and 5.2% this year compared with 2019.
British authorities have blamed the new virus variant for soaring infection rates across the country. They said the variant is much more transmittable, but stress there is no evidence it makes people more ill.
The massive bill includes $1.4 trillion to fund government agencies through September and contains other end-of-session priorities such as money for cash-starved transit systems and an increase in food stamp benefits.
The Indiana State Department of Health on Sunday said 4,792 new individuals had been tested, ending a streak of 61 straight days in which testing in that category had exceeded 10,000.
The federal government could shut down on Tuesday absent Trump’s signature on the attached, $1.4 trillion spending bill to fund operations through Sept. 30, the end of the fiscal year.
Statewide hospitalizations due to COVID-19 dropped to 2,808 on Christmas Day, down from 2,918 on Christmas Eve.
Indiana University Health promised a “full external review” into the treatment of Dr. Susan Moore, 52, who tested positive for COVID-19 late last month and died Dec. 20.
Dennis Murphy, the president and CEO of Indiana University Health, has asked an external team to review the case.
Statewide hospitalizations due to COVID-19 dropped to 2,918 on Thursday, the lowest number since Nov. 15.
Safeguards manufacturers put in place to try to protect workers have helped plants nearly keep up with last year’s production levels. But with the virus spiking in communities that surround the plants, industry and union officials say it may be impossible to keep the virus out of factories.
The rare Christmas Eve session of the House lasted just minutes, with help for millions of Americans awaiting Trump’s signature on a stimulus bill Congress passed earlier this week.
Statewide hospitalizations due to COVID-19 dipped from 3,123 on Tuesday to 3,013 on Wednesday.
After descending from a record-high mark of 3,460 set on Nov. 30, the number of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 has been rising since Saturday. State health officials also reported 62 more deaths on Wednesday, bringing the total to 7,306.
Under the nearly $2 billion deal announced Wednesday, the companies will deliver at least 70 million additional doses by June 30, with the remaining 30 million to be delivered no later than July 31.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has allowed companies to mandate the flu and other vaccines, and has also indicated they can require COVID-19 vaccines.
Pfizer’s vaccine was the first to gain approval from the Food and Drug Administration and initial shipments went to states last week.
In a video posted to Twitter, the president called the $600 checks authorized by the bill “ridiculously low” and complained about a list of provisions that he described as “wasteful spending and much more.”
Indiana received 55,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine on Friday, and another 39,000 doses on Monday, which is a fraction of the state’s needs, officials say.
Indiana health officials have erred in reporting the state’s COVID-19 positivity rate since the beginning of the pandemic due to a problem with the way it was computed, resulting in a lower rate than would be accurate, officials said Tuesday.
Although lawmakers of both parties long agreed that the practice amounted to abusive billing, a lobbying war between doctors and insurers had thwarted a compromise.
