Six years after COVID-19, Indiana is not ready for the next pandemic

By: Jim Merritt

Outlets: Indiana Capital Chronicle

Published: March 17, 2026

Words: 651

Last Updated: 4 days, 1 hour ago

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The world changed six years ago this month. What began as a cluster of pneumonia cases overseas became a global pandemic that took Hoosiers’ lives, upended daily routines, overwhelmed hospitals, shuttered businesses, and forced governments to make decisions at a pace and scale they weren’t ready for — and still aren’t.

As an Indiana state senator, I had a front-row seat to how our state responded in real time — sometimes admirably, sometimes imperfectly …

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