Watch Live: Louisiana governor holds news conference on state's fourth COVID-19 surge
CBSN
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards is holding a news conference on Friday, as the state continues to see rising COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations due to a fourth surge of the virus. The press conference is scheduled for 3 p.m. local time (4 p.m. Eastern).
Across the state on Thursday, 1,620 patients were hospitalized with the virus, CBS affiliate WAFB reports, and 1,625 patients were hospitalized. Health officials say the surge is being spurred by the highly-contagious delta variant. Earlier this week, the governor said 90% of hospitalizations due to COVID-19 complications in the state were unvaccinated patients.An Arizona grand jury indicted 18 people Wednesday in the ongoing investigation into an alleged attempt to use alternate electors after the 2020 presidential election as part of a wider alleged conspiracy to falsely declare then-President Donald Trump the winner, the state's attorney general announced.
Almost four out of every 10 people in the United States live in a place where air pollution is considered bad enough to put their health at risk, the American Lung Association warned in its latest "State of the Air" report released on Wednesday. That proportion of people — about 39% of the population — had risen sharply since earlier rounds of pollutant data were analyzed for the annual report last year, and the trends were especially pronounced in certain parts of the country.