INDIANAPOLIS — Tuesday's latest updates on the coronavirus pandemic.
Arts Council COVID-19 Relief Fund
The City of Indianapolis and the Arts Council of Indianapolis announced that a total of $500,000 has been awarded to 48 Marion County-based nonprofit arts and culture organizations. The money comes from the City of Indianapolis Annual Grants Program COVID-19 Relief Fund.
The grants are meant to help organizations cover for utilities, rent, or mortgage payments.
Indianapolis’ nonprofit arts and culture sector is losing an estimated $8.6 million per month due to COVID-related closures and cancellations.
The Arts Council staff and Board of Directors’ Grants Committee reviewed 50 grant applications to the fund in October and November, and 48 were approved:
- American Cabaret Theatre, Inc.: $15,392.37
- ArtMix Inc.: $15,392.37
- Arts for Lawrence: $2,857.18
- Arts for Learning: $15,392.37
- Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site: $15,392.37
- Big Car Media, Inc.: $14,434.84
- Buck Creek Players, Inc.: $5,607.48
- Cat Head Press: Printshop and Artist Cooperative: $2,242.72
- Claude McNeal's Musical Theatre Training: $900
- Dance Kaleidoscope: $15,392.37
- Drum Corps International, Inc.: $15,392.37
- Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art: $15,392.37
- Classical Music Indy: $5,570.75
- Fonseca Theatre: $2,908.88
- Footlite Musicals: $10,170.79
- Freetown Village, Inc.: $5,585.78
- Harrison Center for the Arts: $15,392.37
- Heartland Film, Inc.: $15,392.37
- Iibada Dance Company, $275
- Indiana Historical Society, $15,392.37
- Indiana Performing Arts Centre Inc., $5,285.32
- Indiana Repertory Theatre, $15,392.37
- Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, $15,392.37
- Indiana Writers Center, $4,137.55
- Indianapolis Art Center, $15,392.37
- Indianapolis Ballet: $15,392.37
- Indianapolis Opera: $6,630.77
- Indianapolis Suzuki Academy, Inc.: $15,392.37
- Indianapolis Women's Chorus: $1,200
- Indianapolis Zoo: $15,392.37
- International Violin Competition of Indianapolis: $15,392.37
- Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library: $15,392.37
- Madam Walker Legacy Center: $9,708.00
- Music for All: $15,392.37
- Newfields: $15,392.37
- Pattern, Inc: $7,000
- Percussive Arts Society: $15,392.37
- Philharmonic Orchestra of Indianapolis: $227.94
- Phoenix Theatre: $15,392.37
- Storefront Theatre of Indianapolis: $9,000
- The Children's Museum of Indianapolis: $15,392.37
- The District Theatre: $4,260.83
- The Indianapolis Theatre Fringe Festival: $10,593.47
- The Indy Convergence, Inc: $4,886.31
- The New Harmony Project Inc.: $4,006.98
- The Sapphire Theatre Company Inc.: $3,719.86
- WFYI Public Media: $15,392.37
- Young Actors Theatre: $9,372.67
Gov. Holcomb extends health emergency order
Gov. Eric Holcomb signed Executive Order 20-49 to extend the public health emergency an additional 30 days.
You can see the order here and the original order by clicking here.
ISDH update
The Indiana State Department of Health reported a record 142 deaths on Tuesday.
Those deaths date back to October and the higher number is in part a result of delays from the Thanksgiving holiday. The total deaths for the state is 5,598.
The state also said there were 5,518 new cases for a total of 344,373.
CDC panel to vote Tuesday on who's first priority for COVID-19 vaccine
A panel of U.S. advisers will meet Tuesday to vote on how scarce, initial supplies of a COVID-19 vaccine will be given out once one has been approved.
Experts have proposed giving the vaccine to health workers first. High priority also may be given to workers in essential industries, people with certain medical conditions and people age 65 and older.
Tuesday's meeting is for the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, a group established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The panel of experts recommends who to vaccinate and when — advice that the government almost always follows.
Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech have asked the Food and Drug Administration to allow emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate. Moderna Inc. is also seeking emergency use of its vaccine.
FDA's scientific advisers are holding a public meeting Dec. 10 to review Pfizer's request, and send a recommendation to the FDA.
Manufacturers already have begun stockpiling coronavirus vaccine doses in anticipation of eventual approval, but the first shots will be in short supply and rationed.
Latest US, world numbers
There have been more than 13.38 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. as of 3:30 a.m. ET Tuesday, according to Johns Hopkins University. There have been more than 266,000 deaths and 5.06 million people recovered.
Worldwide, there have been more than 62.73 million confirmed cases with more than 1.45 million deaths and 40.12 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.
Gov. Holcomb ending quarantine Tuesday
Governor Eric J. Holcomb and First Lady Janet Holcomb are ending their 14-day quarantine Tuesday, Dec. 1 after coming in contact with people who tested positive for COVID-19.
The governor and first lady began quarantining Tuesday, Nov. 20 after several members of their security detail tested positive for COVID-19.
Both the governor and first lady received an Abbott rapid test and a nasopharyngeal PCR test, and had negative results on both.