More than 10 percent of Hoosiers – that’s more than 700,000 people – have been infected with COVID-19 at some point.
That’s according to the latest update from the Fairbanks School of Public Health’s statewide COVID study.
Nir Menachemi leads the study. He said the percentage of Hoosiers ever infected jumped more than 35 percent in just the last month and a half.
“And we have evidence to suggest that an increase in infections among younger Hoosiers quickly translates into more infections – and thus more deaths – among older Hoosiers,” Menachemi said.
Some people – who refuse to listen to health experts – have long called for states to lift all restrictions and ignore COVID-19 precautions in order to establish “herd immunity.” But Menachemi said herd immunity would require 70 percent of Hoosiers to be infected.
“An additional 13,000 Hoosiers – and that doesn’t include the Hoosiers currently in nursing homes – would lose their lives,” Menachemi said.
READ MORE: Concerns Over Indiana's COVID-19 Response Haven't Changed, Even After 5,000 Deaths
More than half of Indiana deaths from COVID-19 come from nursing homes.
Contact reporter Brandon at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.
