Statewide COVID hospitalizations climb to 11-month high
The state on Wednesday reported 80 more deaths from COVID-19, a two-day total of 173. The seven-day average of deaths from COVID rose from 23 to 27 per day.
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COVID cases spike even as U.S. reaches vaccine milestone
Deaths are running close to 1,600 a day on average, back up to where they were in October. And the overall U.S. death toll less than two years into the crisis could hit another heartbreaking milestone, 800,000, in a matter of days.
Judge blocks Biden vaccine mandate for federal contractors
The order came in response to a lawsuit from several contractors and seven states. It applies across the U.S. because one of those challenging the order is the trade group Associated Builders and Contractors Inc.
Irsays to donate $3M to create IU research institute on mental health, stigma
The new Irsay Family Research Institute will be located in a newly renovated space in Morrison Hall on IU’s Bloomington campus.
Pfizer says COVID booster offers protection against omicron
Pfizer and its partner BioNTech said that while two doses may not be protective enough to prevent infection, lab tests showed a booster increased by 25-fold people’s levels of virus-fighting antibodies against the omicron variant.
Hospitalizations from COVID-19 in Indiana climb near 3-month high
The Indiana State Department of Health on Tuesday reported 93 more deaths from COVID-19, increasing the state’s pandemic death toll to 17,230.
Holcomb frustrated with ‘absurd’ vaccine-refusal reasons
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb said the pandemic remains a real threat and is taking lives, but he maintains that the state’s role is to provide vaccines and other resources, not impose vaccine requirements or mask mandates.
First lab results show omicron variant has ability to avoid vaccine antibodies
Initial data indicate that omicron may be more transmissible even than delta, the variant that became dominant throughout the world this summer.
Canadian drugmaker says its COVID-19 vaccine is effective
The Quebec City company said it will seek Canadian approval “imminently” and has also begun the process to file with regulators in the United States, United Kingdom and other countries.
Companies delaying office returns amid omicron uncertainty
Major corporations that had planned to shepherd all their employees back into offices in early 2022 now have to decide whether those dates make sense in light of further evidence of the pandemic’s unpredictability.
Biden pledges savings on insulin, other drugs for Americans
The biggest policy change—a system for Medicare to negotiate prices for prescription drugs—won’t begin to deliver lower costs until 2025, and then only for a selected set of 10 medicines, as well as insulin products.
Hospitals set new pandemic record, with 70% of staffed beds in use
Across the state, 2,408 people were hospitalized for COVID-19 Saturday. That’s up from a recent low of 1,209 on Nov. 6, and six times the number of people hospitalized from COVID-19 at the year-to-date low mark of 369 on June 24.
Omicron possibly more infectious because of ties to common cold coronavirus, study says
The omicron variant is likely to have picked up genetic material from another virus that causes the common cold in humans, according to a new preliminary study.
Health officials say early reports encouraging about omicron
U.S. health officials said while the omicron variant of is rapidly spreading throughout the country, early indications suggest it might be less dangerous than delta, which continues to drive a surge of hospitalizations.
New coronavirus vaccine may eventually be needed for omicron, says BioNTech CEO
CEO Ugur Sahin told Reuters on Friday that he could foresee a scenario where coronavirus vaccine shots became annual, like flu shots.
Omicron coronavirus variant found in multiple U.S. states
The omicron variant of COVID-19, which had been undetected in the United States before the middle of this week, had been discovered in at least five states by late Thursday.
Indiana elder care providers tap lawmakers for hiring help
In an effort to address ongoing staffing woes, industry groups are seeking to ease some training and regulatory requirements.
Statewide hospitalizations from COVID-19 continue to rise
COVID-19 patients now occupy 26.3% of Indiana’s intensive care unit beds.
Legionnaires outbreak reported at central Indiana prison
State correction and health officials are working to determine the source of the outbreak at the Pendleton Correction Facility, with five inmates either testing positive for the bacterial lung infection or with probable cases, officials said.
Justices signal they’ll OK new abortion limits, might toss Roe
The outcome probably won’t be known until June. But after nearly two hours of arguments, all six conservative justices indicated they would uphold a Mississippi law that bans abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy.