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.
Australia to lift 18-month COVID travel ban for vaccinated citizens, tourists still not allowed
Australia has outlined plans to lift a pandemic ban on its vaccinated citizens traveling overseas from November. But no date has yet been set for welcoming international tourists back.
Travel restrictions that have trapped most Australians and permanent residents at home over the past 18 months would be removed when 80% of the population aged 16 and older were fully vaccinated, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Friday.
New South Wales would likely become the first state to reach the 80% vaccination benchmark and Sydney’s airport the first to open to international travel, Morrison said.
Sydney-based Qantas Airways announced international flights would resume from Nov. 14 to London and Los Angeles.
State reports 3,218 new COVID-19 cases, 28 additional deaths
The Indiana State Department of Health reported Friday that 3,218 more Hoosiers have tested positive for COVID-19. That brings the total confirmed case count in the state to 965,982 since March 2020.
ISDH also reported 28 new deaths from the period of Sept. 22-30. Indiana has lost 15,193 residents since the pandemic began.
The state also reported that 3,370 more Indiana residents have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Friday morning. The total number of Hoosiers now considered fully vaccinated is 3,270,143.
Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh tests positive for COVID-19
The Supreme Court says Justice Brett Kavanaugh has tested positive for COVID-19.
The high court said in a press release Friday that Kavanaugh has no symptoms and has been fully vaccinated since January. Kavanaugh and all the other justices had a routine coronavirus test ahead of Friday's ceremonial investiture for Justice Amy Coney Barrett.
The court says Kavanaugh’s wife and daughters are also fully vaccinated, and they tested negative on Thursday. The court says Kavanaugh and his wife will not attend the ceremony.
Merck says experimental pill cuts worst effects of COVID-19
Pharmaceutical company Merck says its experimental COVID-19 pill reduced hospitalizations and deaths by half in people recently infected with the coronavirus.
The company said it would soon ask health officials in the U.S. and around the world to authorize its use. Merck's drug would be the first pill shown to treat COVID-19, a potentially major advance in efforts to fight the pandemic.
The study results were released by the company and have not been peer reviewed. An independent group of medical advisers monitoring the trial recommended stopping it early because the interim results were so strong.
Latest US, world numbers
There have been more than 43.45 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States as of 4 a.m. Friday, according to Johns Hopkins University. There have been more than 697,840 deaths recorded in the U.S.
Worldwide, there have been more than 233.74 million confirmed coronavirus cases with more than 4.78 million deaths. More than 6.23 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.