INDIANAPOLIS — Here are 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 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.
COVID-19 outbreak reported after Ohio church retreat
Local health officials are reporting a COVID-19 outbreak among people who attended a church retreat in Ohio several weeks ago.
Dayton and Montgomery County public health officials said more than 800 people attended the Baptist Church retreat at Camp Chautauqua in Miamisburg from June 27 to July 3.
The retreat included attendees and churches from Ohio, Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana. Officials said at least 30 cases among attendees living in Ohio and Kentucky have been identified so far.
Lacking contact information, officials are asking anyone who may have attended to contact them or their local health department.
Four pop-up clinics coming to Marion County
Marion County health officials have announced four pop-up vaccination clinics that will be held in the next two weeks.
The first two clinics will be held on Monument Circle July 14-15 from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. The second pair of clinics will be held next week, July 21-22, at the Birch Bayh Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse at 46 E. Ohio Street downtown. Those clinics will also take place from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m.
The Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines will be available at the clinic at no cost to any resident 18 years of age or older. No appointment is necessary.
The clinics are being held as part of a partnership between the Marion County Health Department and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Marion County Superior Court, the City of Indianapolis and Downtown Indy, Inc.
Hamilton County clinic reaches out to rural residents
Vaccination clinics are scheduled to be held at Sheridan High School after health officials in Hamilton County noticed a sharp decline in the vaccination rate among more rural residents in the county.
There is no registration for the Sheridan clinic. Walk-ins are welcome and encouraged. The Pfizer vaccine will be administered, which requires two doses. The clinic will be open during the following dates and times:
- Tuesday, July 13 from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
- Thursday, July 15 from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
- Saturday, July 17 from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
- Tuesday, July 20 from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
- Thursday, July 22 from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
- Saturday, July 24 from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Second doses will be scheduled at Sheridan High School the weeks of Aug. 3 and Aug. 10.
Reports: FDA to attach warning to Johnson & Johnson vaccine after rare Guillain-Barré cases
The Food and Drug Administration is said to be preparing to attach a new warning for the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, as very rare "suspected" cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome have been reported after over 10 million doses of the jab have been given out, so far.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, only about 100 "preliminary reports" of Guillain-Barré have surfaced as of Monday, after some 12.8 million doses of Johnson & Johnson's vaccine have been injected into arms.
The CDC said that no cases of GBS had been reported following injections of COVID-19 vaccinations which use mRNA technology.
As the New York Times highlighted, those "roughly 100" reported cases of GBS were considered "suspected cases." The cases have mostly been reported about two weeks after vaccination, and most of the cases are in men.
The CDC said that people who have previously had Guillain-Barré may receive a COVID-19 vaccine. According to the health agency, one case of Guillain-Barré was reported during Johnson & Johnson's Janssen COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials.
One case of Guillain-Barré was also reported among those who received the placebo as well, during clinical trials.
Indiana adds 12K more fully vaccinated residents, 157 new cases
The Indiana State Department of Health reported 12,238 more Hoosiers are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Monday morning. The state has recorded 5,711,880 vaccine shots administered to Indiana residents, and 2,870,442 people are now considered fully vaccinated in the state.
ISDH also reported 157 more residents have tested positive for COVID-19. That brings to 757,904 the number of Indiana residents now known to have had the novel coronavirus.
With no additional deaths recorded on Sunday, Indiana has lost a total of 13,496 people to COVID-19.
Pfizer to discuss vaccine booster with US officials Monday
Pfizer says it plans to meet Monday with top U.S. health officials to discuss the drugmaker’s request for federal authorization of a third dose of its COVID-19 vaccine.
President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser is acknowledging that “it is entirely conceivable, maybe likely” that booster shots will be needed in the coming months.
Last week, Pfizer asserted that booster shots would be needed within 12 months, drawing a rebuttal from U.S. health officials saying booster shots were not needed “at this time.” While Dr. Anthony Fauci isn't ruling out the possibility, he says it's too soon for the government to recommend another shot.
Sheridan clinic to address low vaccine numbers in northern Hamilton Co.
The Hamilton County Health Department will open a new vaccine clinic at Sheridan High School on Tuesday, July 13. The new clinic is designed to help boost the number of fully vaccinated residents in northern Hamilton County.
"When we break our vaccination numbers down by zip code, we see considerably fewer people getting vaccinated in the northern, more rural area of our county," said Chris Walker, emergency preparedness coordinator for the Hamilton County Health Department.
Hamilton County is the second-most vaccinated county in the state with nearly 69% of its residents 12 years and older now fully vaccinated. However, a closer look into those statistics reveals a discrepancy between the northern and southern halves of the county. Only 39% of residents in the 46031 zip code representing the Atlanta area, 45% of the residents in the 46069 zip code representing Sheridan, and 46% of residents in the 46030 zip code representing Arcadia are fully vaccinated.
There is no registration for the Sheridan clinic. Walk-ins are welcome and encouraged. The Pfizer vaccine will be administered which requires two doses. The clinic will be open during the following dates and times:
- Tuesday, July 13 from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
- Thursday, July 15 from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
- Saturday, July 17 from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
- Tuesday, July 20 from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
- Thursday, July 22 from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
- Saturday, July 24 from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Second doses will be scheduled at Sheridan High School for the weeks of Aug. 3 and Aug.10.
This week's central Indiana mobile vaccination clinic schedule
Thursday, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.:
Red Gold
120 E. Oak St., Orestes, IN 46063
Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.:
Red Gold
120 E. Oak St.,, Orestes, IN 46063
Friday, 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.:
Tipton County Fair
1200 S. Main St., Cicero Room, Tipton, IN 46072
Saturday, noon-10 p.m.:
Tipton County Fair
1200 S. Main St., Cicero Room, Tipton, IN 46072
Friday-Saturday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.:
Indiana Black & Minority Health Fair
Indiana Convention Center
100 S. Capitol Ave., Indianapolis, 46225
Sunday, noon-6 p.m.:
Indiana Black & Minority Health Fair
Indiana Convention Center
100 S. Capitol Ave., Indianapolis, 46225
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.
Latest US, world numbers
There have been more than 33.85 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States as of 2:30 a.m. ET Monday, according to Johns Hopkins University. There have been more than 607,150 deaths in the U.S.
Worldwide, there have been more than 186.8 million confirmed coronavirus cases with more than 4.031 million deaths. More than 3.43 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.