INDIANAPOLIS — Monday'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 select groups through Indiana State Department of Health. This story will be updated over the course of the day with more news on the COVID-19 pandemic.
ISDH update
The Indiana State Department of Health reports 2,210 new cases and 12 additional deaths from COVID-19.
Merck ends development of two potential COVID-19 vaccines
Drugmaker Merck is giving up on two potential COVID-19 vaccines following poor results in early-stage studies.
The announcement Monday said that the company will focus instead on studying two possible treatments for the virus that also have yet to be approved by regulators. The company said its potential vaccines were well tolerated by patients, but they generated an inferior immune system response compared with other vaccines.
Last fall, Merck started early-stage research on a single-dose vaccine in volunteers. Double-dose vaccines developed by Pfizer and Moderna were already in late-stage research at that point.
The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were approved for use late last year.
Five other potential vaccines have reached late-stage testing in the United States, the final phase before a drugmaker seeks approval from regulators. Results from a single-dose candidate developed by Johnson & Johnson are expected soon.
IPS continues phased return to in-person learning
Starting Monday, Jan. 25, students in Pre-K through sixth grade, except for sixth graders on a middle school schedule, will return to a full in-person schedule at school. Those sixth graders on a middle school schedule, along with students in grades 7 through 12, will return to in-person learning, but on a hybrid schedule.
The hybrid schedule is the same as the fall for students in grades 7-12, the district announced. That means students with a last name starting with the letter A-K will attend class in-person on Monday and Tuesday. They will learn remotely Wednesday through Friday.
Students whose last names start with letters L-Z will be in school Thursday and Friday after learning remotely Monday through Wednesday.
Students who attend an IPS Innovation Network School could be on a different schedule. Parents of those students are encouraged to contact the school for the latest information.
Parents who want to change their student to remote learning should also contact the child's school.
Students in Pre-K through third grade returned to in-person learning full-time Tuesday, Jan. 19.
IPS joined other Marion County schools by going to a full remote learning schedule in November at the direction of the Marion County Public Health Department.
Click here to learn more about the IPS schedule plan.
Fishers mass vaccination site opens Monday
The Fishers Health Department will open a mass vaccination site at a former Marsh grocery store Monday morning.
The clinic at 116th Street and Brooks School Road will be able to provide vaccines for more than 1,600 patients each day.
People eligible to receive the vaccine will need to pre-schedule an appointment and be free of COVID-19 symptoms to get their shot.
Latest US, world numbers
There have been more than 25.12 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States as of 12:30 a.m. ET Monday, according to Johns Hopkins University. There have been more than 419,000 deaths in the U.S.
Worldwide, there have been more than 99.17 million confirmed cases with more than 2.12 million deaths and 54.72 million recoveries.
The real number of people infected by the virus around the world is believed to be much higher — perhaps 10 times higher in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — given testing limitations and the many mild cases that have gone unreported or unrecognized.
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.
President Biden to reinstate COVID-19 travel restrictions, add South Africa to list
President Joe Biden on Monday will formally reinstate COVID-19 travel restrictions on non-U.S. travelers from Brazil, Ireland, the United Kingdom and 26 other European countries that allow travel across open borders, according to two White House officials.
The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the order, also confirmed Sunday that South Africa would be added to the restricted list because of concerns about a variant of the virus that has spread beyond that nation.
Biden is reversing an order from former President Donald Trump in his final days in office that called for the relaxation of the travel restrictions as of Tuesday.