INDIANAPOLIS — Sunday's latest updates on the coronavirus pandemic.
Avon HS transitioning to e-leaning after positive cases continue
Parents of Avon High School students got a message Sunday night about a big change next week.
Monday school will be in session as normal. Then on Tuesday, the high school will be virtual learning only for everyone for the rest of the week.
The message to families says there have been five confirmed COVID-19 cases at the high school, so the school district will take this time to figure out how to handle things moving forward, whether it's a hybrid approach or e-learning completely.
Below is the full statement on Avon High School's website:
Avon Schools is committed to making adjustments as needed to best meet the needs of our students. Beginning Tuesday, August 11th, Avon High School will transition to e-Learning for the remainder of the week. Students will attend in-person on Monday, August 10th and then work with their assigned teachers for the remainder of the week at home. ACSC administrators will use this time to continue to review and finalize options for a hybrid approach at Avon High School. A hybrid schedule will allow for fewer students in the school by using both in-person and online instruction. We are planning to utilize a hybrid schedule for the weeks of August 17th and August 24th. It is our current plan to transition back to fully in-person instruction at AHS beginning on August 31st. At this time, no adjustments in school schedules are occurring at any other Avon schools and they will continue in-person instruction next week as scheduled.
New Zealand marks 100 days with no new COVID-19 cases
New Zealand on Sunday marked 100 days since it stamped out the spread of the coronavirus, a rare bright spot in a world that continues to be ravaged by the disease.
New Zealand got rid of the virus by imposing a strict lockdown in late March when only about 100 people had tested positive for the disease.
For the past three months, the only new cases have been a handful of returning travelers who have been quarantined at the border.
Total infections were limited to just over 1,500 and the country has had just 22 deaths.
ISDH update
The Indiana State Department of Health reports 1,048 new cases of COVID-19 for a total of 74,328. The state positivity average for COVID cases over the last seven days is now 7.5 percent.
The state also reported one more death for a total of 2,835.
Latest US, world numbers
There have been 5 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. as of 10 a.m. ET Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins University. There have been more than 162,430 deaths and 1.62 million people recovered.
Worldwide, there have been 19.6 million confirmed cases with more than 727,353 deaths.
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, including pneumonia and death.
Indiana Saturday numbers: 1,036 new cases, 13 additional deaths
After Friday's record day of 1,253 new cases, the Indiana State Department of Health reported 1,036 new positive cases of COVID-19 among Hoosiers on Saturday - making it the second-highest day of the pandemic. Indiana's daily total also topped the thousand mark for the third consecutive day.
Saturday's updated number brings to 73,287 the total number of Indiana residents known to have the novel coronavirus following corrections to the previous day’s total.
The 13 additional deaths brings the state's total to 2,834 fatal cases of the virus. Another 202 probable deaths have been reported based on patients for whom no positive test was recorded before they died, but who exhibited symptoms of the virus.
Nearly 830-thousand people have been been tested in the state during the pandemic, with 8.8 percent of those individuals coming back positive. More than a million tests have been administered overall representing multiple tests given to the same person.
Hospital capacity remains stable with 34 percent of ICU beds and nearly 81 percent of ventilators available across the state.
US response to the virus is met with incredulity abroad
America's failure so far to contain the spread of the coronavirus as it moves across the country has been met with astonishment and alarm on both sides of the Atlantic.
Much of the incredulity in Europe stems from the fact that America had the benefit of time, European experience and medical know-how to treat the virus. That is something the old continent didn’t have when the first COVID-19 patients started overwhelming its intensive care units.
Yet, more than four months into a sustained outbreak, the U.S. is about to hit an astonishing milestone of 5 million confirmed infections, easily the highest in the world.
Trump order allows some unemployment pay, defers payroll tax
President Donald Trump has bypassed the nation’s lawmakers as he claimed the authority to defer payroll taxes and replace an expired unemployment benefit with a lower amount after negotiations with Congress on a new coronavirus rescue package collapsed.
President Trump’s orders on Saturday encroached on Congress’ control of federal spending and seemed likely to be met with legal challenges. The president cast his actions as necessary given that lawmakers have been unable to reach an agreement to plunge more money into the stumbling economy, which has imperiled his November reelection.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer dismissed Trump’s actions as “meager” in the face of economic and health crises facing Americans.