Indiana recently recorded its first flu death of the season. And the state has offered the flu vaccine at some of its COVID-19 vaccination sites, since the two can be taken together.

When the pandemic struck the U.S. around spring break of 2020, it set off an exodus in college towns as classrooms went virtual almost overnight. The sudden departure of tens of thousands of students made it difficult to count them in the census, which began at almost the same time.

Student COVID-19 cases are dropping, in line with statewide declines. At the same time, businesses and workers have questions about how Indiana's government will respond to the new Biden administration vaccine rule. And experts say it's too soon to call COVID-19 "endemic."

Marion County Public Health Department Director Dr. Virginia Caine said the goal is to reduce the spread of COVID.

The Indiana Health Department added booster shots given to its daily tracking of vaccine distribution.

Thirteen independent music venues across Marion County each received an average of nearly $19,000 through the program created to support recovery from the pandemic.

Camp officials recently completed a campaign to vaccinate over 6,100 evacuees against measles, mumps, rubella, and chickenpox. Flu vaccinations will begin this weekend, as will second doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.

The number of individuals hospitalized with COVID-19 remains high across the country and the Midwest. With the delta variant dominating cases, patients now are younger, sicker and often require more intensive care, hospitals like Methodist in Des Moines are facing pressure.

After a year and a half of the COVID-19 pandemic, public health experts believe we're still a way off from endemic — a term used for a disease that is normally seen in a population.

The Indiana Department of Labor will be charged with enforcing the new rule, although labor unions have long said the agency is routinely underfunded.