Indiana tops 1,000 in confirmed, likely coronavirus deaths

INDIANAPOLIS - Indiana now has more than 1,000 people die with confirmed or likely coronavirus infections since the outbreak hit the state early last month, health officials said Wednesday.

The Indiana State Department of Health reported 63 additional deaths, boosting the state’s confirmed COVID-19 death toll to 964.

Ten more presumed COVID-19 deaths added to the state statistics give Indiana 101 such fatalities. Those are deaths that state officials said doctors blame on coronavirus infections without confirmation of the illness from test results.

Most of the newly confirmed deaths happened Monday and Tuesday, but others date back as far as April 7. The new deaths make April 14 and April 21 the days with Indiana’s most fatalities at 42 each.

Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb said Tuesday he would announce changes Friday to the statewide stay-at-home order that has been in effect since March 25. State officials are considering information such as hospitalization and death rates, along with the availability of intensive care unit beds and ventilators for those who are seriously ill in deciding whether to lift any restrictions, Holcomb said.

The latest state statistics showed 571 COVID-19 patients were in the intensive care units of Indiana hospitals and that 43% of ICU beds remained available as of Tuesday. That’s 25 more coronavirus patients in those ICUs than Monday, but 50 fewer than last Thursday.