Coronavirus In Indiana: State Sets Records For Daily COVID-19 Cases, Hospitalizations
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The state of Indiana reported a record high number of daily COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, while also reaching an all-time high for the number of Hoosiers in the hospital for COVID treatment.
State health officials reported 3,756 cases, topping the old record of 3,619 set on Oct. 28. There are now 1,897 COVID patients in the hospital. The last time hospitalizations were this high was in mid-April. The state is currently averaging 27 deaths a day, the highest number since mid May. A total of 4,464 people have died of COVID-19, making it the third-leading cause of death in the state, behind heart disease and cancer. Compared to common flu deaths, the numbers are staggering. State health officials have said that a bad flu season for Indiana would cause 150 to 200 deaths. Based on the current averages, COVID-19 has killed that many people in one week.
In Northwest Indiana, hospitalizations in the five county region are also hovering at record levels, with 314 patients being treated for COVID. The average daily case count is rising and now stands at 498. In Lake County alone, there were 225 cases, which is not near a record number, but the test positivity rate is surging, now at 12.3% with a record high number of tests conducted. As a measure of the seriousness of the outbreak, the state put the county at a 2.5 out of 3. If the positivity rises 3%, Lake County would rise to the red level, or 3 of 3 on the state's metric chart. Currently, there are only three counties, in the central and southern part of the state, at that level.
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