INDIANAPOLIS — Here are Friday's latest updates on the coronavirus pandemic, including the latest news on COVID-19 vaccinations and testing in Indiana.
Registrations for the vaccine are now open for Hoosiers 12 and older through the Indiana State Department of Health. This story will be updated over the course of the day with more news on the COVID-19 pandemic.
62,000 wasted COVID-19 vaccine doses out of 6 million administered
Indiana health officials have counted about 62,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines being tossed out in recent months as the number of people seeking the shots has fallen drastically.
That is a small portion of the some 6 million vaccine shots that have been given in Indiana since they first became available in December, but a sign of the struggle that officials face in raising the state’s vaccination rate.
The state health department said vaccine doses can go unused by reaching their expiration date or a vial breaking. About 45% of Indiana residents are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, the 16th lowest rate among the states.
State reports 5,803 more full vaccinations, 14 deaths
The Indiana State Department of Health reported 5,803 more Hoosiers are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Friday morning. In total, 3,038,067 Indiana residents are now considered fully vaccinated.
ISDH also reported 4,120 new cases of the novel coronavirus and 14 additional deaths that occurred between Tuesday and Thursday. Indiana has now lost 13,797 people to COVID-19.
Latest US, world numbers
There have been more than 37.29 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States as of 3:30 a.m. Friday, according to Johns Hopkins University. There have been more than 625,100 deaths recorded in the U.S.
Worldwide, there have been more than 210 million confirmed coronavirus cases with more than 4.4 million deaths. More than 4.83 billion vaccine doses have been administered worldwide.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness like pneumonia, or death.
Upcoming central Indiana mobile vaccination clinics
Today, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.:
Carrier
7310 W. Morris St., Indianapolis, IN 46231
Today, 2:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.:
Mooresville High School
550 N. Indiana St., Mooresville, IN 46158
Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.:
Annual American Indian Council Pow Wow
Boone County Fairgrounds
1300 E. 100 South, Lebanon, IN 46052
In addition, free COVID-19 testing and vaccinations will be offered at the following locations from noon to 8 p.m. on the following dates and locations:
Today:
Country Market
301 3rd St., Covington, IN 47932
Today-Saturday:
Shenandoah Elementary School
5256 N. Raider Rd., Middletown, IN 47356
Miami County Fairgrounds
1029 W. 200 North, Peru, IN 46970
Clark Pleasant Community School Corp.
50 Center St., Whiteland, IN 46184
Saturday:
Bedford First Assembly
2601 27th St., Bedford, IN 47421
Carroll County 4-H Community Building
102 N. S. 4th St., Flora, IN 46929
Patients with an appointment at a state-hosted public vaccination site can get a free Uber or Lyft ride. Call 2-1-1 or (866) 211-9966 to receive a voucher to cover the cost of an Uber ride to and from your vaccination appointments. IU Health offers free Lyft rides to any vaccine site in the state. Call 1.888.IUHEALTH (888-484-3258) and choose option 9 if you need transportation to your vaccine appointment.
Federal courts impose new COVID-19 restrictions amid surge
When Sigal Chattah goes to federal court to challenge a school mask mandate issued by the governor of Nevada, she'll likely be required to wear the very thing she's arguing against: a mask.
That’s because U.S. District Court in Las Vegas and other courts where plaintiffs are demanding their freedoms from masking and COVID-19 vaccinations require everyone to wear masks. Just as in-person hearings and trials resumed at courthouses around the country, a surge of coronavirus cases sparked by the delta variant has prompted some federal courts to impose new restrictions and requirements for mask-wearing and vaccinations.
“The whole situation is very ironic,” said Chattah, a Republican candidate for state attorney general who is representing two parents in a lawsuit that charges a mask mandate ordered by Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak is unconstitutional.
The Democratic governor's order requires students and school employees in the Las Vegas and Reno areas to wear masks on buses and inside school buildings, regardless of vaccination status. The lawsuit challenging them calls the governor's orders “draconian” and says they will inflict emotional distress on schoolchildren and their parents.
Some federal courts re-imposing virus restrictions have also seen lawsuits filed or heard cases challenging public health measures.
Several federal courts have revived old requirements that were relaxed earlier this summer when new cases were plummeting as vaccination rates increased.
Many of the revised policies cite the updated guidance issued late last month by CDC as infection rates soared due to the highly contagious delta variant. The CDC said fully vaccinated people should return to wearing masks in indoor public places in communities where the virus is spreading quickly. It also recommended that all teachers, students and staff at schools wear masks, even if they are fully vaccinated, setting off a firestorm of protests and lawsuits as schools across the country prepare to reopen.
Feds seize over 3,000 fake vaccination cards in Anchorage
More than 3,000 fake COVID-19 vaccination cards have been confiscated at cargo freight facilities at the Anchorage airport as they were being shipped from China, officials said Thursday.
Officers from U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized the cards in the past week as they arrived in small packages, said Jaime Ruiz, an agency spokesperson.
There were between 135 and 150 packages found in Anchorage, all sent by the same person in China, Ruiz said. The packages contained small amounts of the fake cards, about 20 or 25 each.
The cards confiscated in Anchorage closely resemble the authentic Centers for Disease Control and Prevention certificates given out by health care workers when U.S. citizens receive their vaccinations, the agency said. However, this shipment had cards that exhibited low-quality printing.