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Indiana's COVID-19 infections continue at record pace

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Indiana's daily average of new coronavirus infections continued growing at record levels with Friday's update from state health officials, who also added 23 more COVID-19 deaths to the state's toll.

The state health department's daily update showed Indiana's seven-day rolling average of newly confirmed COVID-19 infections reached 1,720 as of Thursday. That is the highest level the state has seen during the pandemic and has more than doubled over the past three weeks.

The 2,320 new infections reported Friday marked the first time that figure topped 2,000 in a single day, but the health department said the number was inflated by about 300 cases that weren't previously included because of technical issues.

The newly recorded deaths raise Indiana's death toll to 3,887, including confirmed and presumed coronavirus infections, according to the health department. That's an increase of 126 deaths in the past week.

Gov. Eric Holcomb cited the increase in cases on Wednesday when he said he would continue the statewide mask mandate for another month. Holcomb, however, chastised those who resist wearing masks as disregarding the safety of others.

Indiana's 1,311 COVID-19 hospitalizations reported as of Thursday keeps Indiana at its highest level since mid-May. Such hospitalizations have grown by two-thirds since late September when Holcomb decided to lift nearly all state restrictions on businesses and crowd sizes.

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