EVANSVILLE, Ind. — COVID-19 cases are trending downward as the current wave of infections reach its peak and masking and social distancing have largely faded from memory.
But now Hoosiers could enter a new era of unknown health effects.
The transition comes as case counts and public data become less reliable due to people moving to home-based testing. Officially, fewer deaths are being reported, and hospitalizations are far lower than they were during any previous wave of infections.
But some danger still remains, experts said.
“I think we’re seeing a shift away from worrying so much about deaths and hospitalizations and more about secondary issues like longer health consequences from long COVID,” said Micah Pollack, an Indiana University Northwest economics professor and COVID-19 data analyst.
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“You can take some solace in that your risk of being hospitalized or dying, if you catch COVID now, is much lower. But there still are a lot of long-term health consequences that we’re only just learning about.”
Pollack said doctors have seen patients battle vascular problems and blood clots. More issues could arise as the medical community learns more about the virus and its long-term effects.
As of Wednesday, there were only 22 reported COVID-19 cases in Vanderburgh County according to the Indiana state COVID-19 dashboard. Of those, 13 are first-time infections.
But self-tests could be keeping those numbers lower.
The Indiana State Department of Health encourages Hoosiers to report their positive test to their local health department. But that doesn’t always happen.
Plus, self-tests don’t trace antibodies that would detect a previous infection, according to the CDC. Pollack said case data has been imperfect from the beginning due to people having COVID-19 and not knowing.
“We have to remember that the cases that are being picked up and reported by the state have always been a fraction of the true infections that are out there,” Pollack said. “With at-home testing, it’s probably even more imperfect.”
Hospitalizations down significantly
Hospitalizations in the Evansville area have decreased significantly since the peak of the omicron variant. At both Deaconess and Ascension St. Vincent, COVID patients make up only 1% of admissions.
“There are very few admissions of COVID right now,” said Jennifer Chiusano, Deaconess’ chief nurse executive.
Dr. Heidi Dunniway, chief regional medical officer for Ascension St. Vincent, said her facility is experiencing similar conditions. St. Vincent has seen a huge drop in hospitalizations since April. But that doesn’t mean COVID is gone.
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She said the omicron variant is still highly transmissible, but people are not getting as sick.
“We have more understanding and more options to treat people than we did at the start,” she said.
Testing and vaccinations
According to the CDC, 58% of Vanderburgh County residents are fully vaccinated as of Monday. That entails people who have received a full slate of the original vaccines, but does not include a booster.
Appointments must be made for testing at Ascension St. Vincent Evansville. Call 812-485-2273 to schedule one.
Deaconess Health System’s testing and vaccine center is available by appointment with a few locations offering drive-through services. Appointments can be made through their website or by calling 812-450-6555.
The Vanderburgh Health Department holds COVID-19 vaccination clinics on Tuesdays for those 12 and older, and Wednesdays for ages 5 to 11. It’s by appointment only, and patients can call 812-435-2400.
What’s next?
“It is something people have to protect themselves against going forward,” said Joe Gries, the administrator of the Vanderburgh County Health Department, said of COVID. “We still have treatments for people with underlying conditions and methods to protect ourselves.”
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved the Pfizer booster shot for children ages 5 to 11. The CDC and FDA are also looking for approval for a vaccination for children 6 months and older.
The FDA will meet June 15 for an emergency-use authorization request for a Moderna vaccine for children 6 months to 5 years old, and for a a Pfizer vaccine for children 6 months to 4 years old.
“There could be a new variant that pops up any day that is totally different than what we got right now,” Pollack said. “We’re in another wave of COVID that started early April and it’s probably close peaking in terms of cases. So people shouldn’t think that COVID is gone.”
COVID-19 cases in Evansville-area counties
Overall tallies as of June 7:
- Vanderburgh County has reported 58,753 COVID-19 cases during the pandemic and 623 deaths.
- Warrick County has reported 20,764 COVID-19 cases during the pandemic and 233 deaths.
- Gibson County has reported 11,897 COVID-19 cases during the pandemic and 138 deaths.
- Posey County has reported 6,660 COVID-19 cases during the pandemic and 58 deaths
