Delaware County's COVID-19 cases up 115.9%; Indiana cases surge 125.1%

Mike Stucka
·4 min read

New coronavirus cases leaped in Indiana in the week ending Sunday, Dec. 5, rising 125.1% as 33,847 cases were reported. The previous week had 15,038 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19.

Indiana ranked ninth among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the latest week coronavirus cases in the United States increased 67.6% from the week before, with 843,458 cases reported. With 2.02% of the country's population, Indiana had 4.01% of the country's cases in the last week. Across the country, 48 states had more cases in the latest week than they did in the week before.

Thanksgiving significantly disrupted who got tested, how many people got tested, what labs operated and what government agencies reported on time. Some governments reported three days of data for Thanksgiving week; some reported none. The reporting of many cases and deaths were shifted from Thanksgiving's week into last week, making Thanksgiving week artificially low and the latest week artificially high, skewing the week-to-week comparison. These numbers are unreliable even as they're accurate to what states reported.

Delaware County reported 531 cases and 17 deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 246 cases and five deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 16,761 cases and 303 deaths.

For subscribers: Anticipating omicron, Indiana hospitals already battling COVID delta variant surge

Randolph County reported 174 cases and zero deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 53 cases and one death. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 3,944 cases and 107 deaths.

Henry County reported 260 cases and six deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 132 cases and one death. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 9,177 cases and 169 deaths.

Blackford County reported 82 cases and zero deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 40 cases and zero deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 2,221 cases and 44 deaths.

Jay County reported 156 cases and zero deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 39 cases and two deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 3,310 cases and 50 deaths.

Within Indiana, the worst weekly outbreaks on a per-person basis were in Huntington County with 1,043 cases per 100,000 per week; Union County with 1,021; and Fayette County with 1,013. The Centers for Disease Control says high levels of community transmission begin at 100 cases per 100,000 per week.

Adding the most new cases overall were Marion County, with 3,033 cases; Allen County, with 2,716 cases; and Lake County, with 1,966. Weekly case counts rose in 92 counties from the previous week. The worst increases from the prior week's pace were in Marion, Allen and Lake counties.

>> See how your community has fared with recent coronavirus cases

Indiana ranked 45th among states in share of people receiving at least one shot, with 54.9% of its residents at least partially vaccinated. The national rate is 68.8%, a USA TODAY analysis of CDC data shows. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which are the most used in the United States, require two doses administered a few weeks apart.

In the week ending Thursday, Indiana reported administering another 141,752 vaccine doses, including 41,379 first doses. In the previous week, the state administered 105,803 vaccine doses, including 23,778 first doses. In all, Indiana reported it has administered 7,555,848 total doses.

In Indiana, 326 people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday. In the week before that, 139 people were reported dead.

A total of 1,118,335 people in Indiana have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began, and 17,712 people have died from the disease, Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the United States 49,085,361 people have tested positive and 788,363 people have died.

>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States

Indiana's COVID-19 hospital admissions rising

USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, Dec. 5.

Likely COVID patients admitted in the state:

  • Last week: 3,273

  • The week before that: 2,636

  • Four weeks ago: 1,790

Likely COVID patients admitted in the nation:

  • Last week: 88,233

  • The week before that: 76,364

  • Four weeks ago: 68,138

Hospitals in 33 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 28 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds. Hospitals in 45 states admitted more COVID-19 patients in the latest week than a week prior, the USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Health and Human Services data shows.

The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control. If you have questions about the data or the story, contact Mike Stucka at mstucka@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Delaware County COVID cases increased by 531 this week