Indiana added 4,120 new COVID-19 cases to the state’s COVID dashboard Friday, as hospitalizations and the positivity rate continue to climb.
The state last saw a day of more than 4,000 new cases in mid-January, as the fall/late winter surge, which peaked at about twice that number, was on the downswing.
Now, however, Indiana and the nation are seeing COVID cases and the toll rise rapidly. On Friday 1,744 people were hospitalized for COVID across the state, only 50 fewer people than were hospitalized at the peak of the first COVID surge in spring 2020.
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With hospitals busy treating people with a range of ailments, including COVID, just over 20% of intensive care unit beds across the state were available on Friday. About one-fifth of the state’s 2,176 ICU beds were occupied by someone with COVID, according to the state’s dashboard. ICU beds have not been this scarce since late December.
In the health district that encompasses Central Indiana, just over 13% of ICU beds are currently available, the lowest since the pandemic’s start.
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The state also added 14 new deaths to its count, all of which occurred in the past three days. Since the start of the pandemic, 13,797 people have died of COVID in Indiana.
While Marion County leads the state with 541 new COVID cases reported Friday, some other Central Indiana counties are also hard hit. Johnson County reported 160 new cases, Hamilton 160 new cases, Hendricks 87, and Hancock 64.
Other counties reporting more than 100 new cases Friday include Lake in the northwest corner of the state with 125; Allen County, home to Fort Wayne, reported 225 new cases; Clark in the southeastern part of the state had 126 new cases; Knox County on the southwestern side 153; and Vanderburgh, home to Evansville, 158.
Meanwhile, the state has seen a very slight uptick in the number of people getting vaccinated each day. Just under 52% of the state’s eligible population is now vaccinated.
To schedule a vaccination, call 211 or visit ourshot.in.gov. Many sites also offer walk-in appointments.
Contact IndyStar reporter Shari Rudavsky at shari.rudavsky@indystar.com. Follow her on Facebook and on Twitter: @srudavsky.
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