Inconsistent delivery of diabetes medications was commonly reported, and prisoners say the pandemic has strained an already strapped health care system in the state prisons.

Families say prisons refuse to disclose basic information that would put them at ease, including whether an inmate is alive. In some cases, families didnt know their loved ones were sick until after they had died -- even though a department policy calls for notification when death may be imminent.

Prisoner accounts contradict a statement the Indiana Department of Correction released after 73-year-old inmate Scottie Edwards' death, and raise questions about the care inmates receive for COVID-19.

The 67-year-old guard worked at the Wabash Valley Correctional Facility near the town of Carlisle in southwestern Indiana's Sullivan County, according to the state Department of Correction.

The number of Indiana prisoners who tested positive has jumped from 34 to 116, state officials said. But even as the governor expressed confidence that Indiana would avoid a major outbreak, prisoners and their relatives said more safeguards are needed.

A number of inmates in state correctional facilities around Indiana have tested positive for COVID-19, increasing concerns about social distancing practices in prisons and county jails.

The Indiana Department of Correction says it is taking measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus among the more than 26,000 inmates housed in the state's 21 facilities. But accounts from inmates and their relatives contradict the agency's claims.

On Wednesday, Indiana's Joint Information Center confirmed to Side Effects Public Media that 10 prisoners in state Department of Correction facilities have now tested positive for COVID-19, along with 20 agency employees.

The Indiana Department of Correction is manufacturing personal protective equipment for first responders during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Indianas prison populations are still eating meals together in large groups and mixing during outdoor recreation even as Hoosiers are keeping their distance as a stay-at-home order took effect Wednesday aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus.