Coronavirus

Alabama’s Average Daily New COVID Cases Now Nearly Seven Times Higher Than Two Weeks Ago

The number of new cases of COVID-19 virus infections in Alabama is rising at an alarming rate, with the daily count now almost seven times higher than it was on July 5. The Alabama Department of Public Health, which releases new case counts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, reported 718 new cases today. That’s in addition to an unscheduled update on Sunday of 1,625 new cases over the weekend. Those numbers have pushed the 7-day moving average up to 815 cases per day. Compared to a reading of 121 as of July 5, the average is now 6.74 times higher over two weeks’ time. It’s the highest reading for the 7-day average since March 5, except for a short period in May that was affected by a large number of backlogged cases added to the system in a “data dump.” Read more.

by Robert Carter

K-12 Schools Look to ‘Fill the Gap’ With Incoming $2 Billion COVID Relief Funds

MONTGOMERY — Alabama’s K-12 schools have about $2.02 billion coming in from the American Rescue Plan Act that schools will be able to spend over the next three years, making it one of the largest single investments Alabama has ever seen for public education. In three rounds of COVID-19 federal relief funding since last year, K-12 schools are getting more than $3.1 billion. That’s more than four years’ worth of annual federal Title I money targeted at helping low-income learners. “We’ve never had an influx of money like this before and we’re excited about the possibilities,” State Superintendent Eric Mackey told Alabama Daily News. Read more.

by Caroline Beck, Alabama Daily News

Alabama’s COVID New-Case Average Quintuples in 10 Days, as Health Officials Struggle to Get More People Vaccinated

The fears of many Alabama health care professionals may be realized, if the latest numbers on new cases of COVID-19 are any indication. BirminghamWatch's periodic analysis of the number of new cases, hospitalizations and deaths resulting from the virus, spikes have shown up in all major categories over the past two weeks. In some cases, the numbers have multiplied over the period that includes the Fourth of July holiday weekend. The causes of these increases cannot be precisely pinpointed, but three main factors are in play: the rise of the more-dangerous Delta variant of the virus, the higher number of people gathering in large groups without masks this summer, and the low percentage of Alabamians who have been vaccinated. “It’s a combination of ‘all of the above,’” said Jefferson County Health Officer Dr. Mark Wilson. Read more.

by Robert Carter

“It’s playing a game with us”: Researcher says COVID Delta variant is spreading in Alabama

The latest version of the COVID-19 virus, known as the Delta variant, is becoming prevalent in samples tested in the past few weeks and shows signs of spreading even further. That’s the finding of Derek Moates, a researcher and manager of the laboratory at the UAB Department of Pathology Fungal Reference Lab. Moates shared his research in an online press conference Tuesday. He warned that Alabama’s low vaccination rate, coupled with how quickly and easily the Delta variant spreads, poses a growing concern in the state. Coates has been monitoring the spread of the variant in samples collected from across Alabama. The Delta variant, which originated in India, has become the dominant strain in much of the world, and is feared because it is much more contagious than the original virus strain. Read more.

by Robert Carter

Stats: Drug Overdose Deaths Increase Significantly in 2020

Alabama had 980 drug overdose deaths in 2020, an increase of about 27% from 2019, according to preliminary numbers from the Alabama Department of Public Health. Alabama Daily News requested the drug overdose and suicide death information from ADPH last month to compare the pandemic year to previous ones. State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris said he didn’t have a complete explanation for the spike in overdose deaths, but it’s reasonable that the pandemic contributed to it. “People had difficult economic times, they had social isolation and just being out of their normal activities,” Harris said. “And I think public health and other health care interventions were probably sidelined a bit because everyone was focused on COVID.” Separately, there were 793 suicides in 2020, according to information obtained from death certificates. That’s slightly fewer than the preceding three years, but Harris cautioned that the 2020 numbers are preliminary and could increase. Read more.

by Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News

Its Future in Limbo, Limiting Telehealth in the Gulf South Could Be Troublesome for Rural Areas

Telehealth became a necessity for many people during the COVID-19 pandemic. But with state health emergencies expiring, laws that have made it more available could go away, leaving the region’s more rural areas hurting the most due to access barriers and disparities. Read more.

by Shalina Chatlani, Gulf States Newsroom

Alabama Won’t Require Masks, Social Distancing at K-12 Schools

MONTGOMERY — State Superintendent Eric Mackey on Friday said there will be no push from the state department to require students or staff to wear masks when schools resume next month. Mackey told Alabama Daily News it will be up to local schools to approach mask-wearing and social distancing. “Local school districts have the authority if they want to do something with requirements, but we are not going to do any guidance from the state level on that,” Mackey said. Read more.

by Caroline Beck, Alabama Daily News

Counties at Very High Risk of COVID Spread Quadruples in 2 Weeks

The number of Alabama counties listed as being at “very high risk” for the spread of COVID-19 has quadrupled in the past two weeks, the state Department of Public Health reported Thursday. ADPH listed six counties in its highest level of risk in its weekly report on June 24, but that total rose to 21 on July 1 and to 26 this week. Read more.

by Glenn Stephens

With COVID Cases on the Rise, Health Officials Say They’re Seeing Last Year’s Pattern Repeat Itself

Health officials warned Wednesday that Alabama may be headed toward an explosion in the number of COVID-19 cases, similar to the pattern last year when there were thousands of new cases every day. The state has averaged 275 new cases a day over the past week, compared with 153 new cases per day two weeks ago. Jefferson County’s increase is even greater, with cases doubling from 90 in mid June to 190 last week. Read more.

by Glenn Stephens

Committee to Analyze State’s Response to COVID-19

MONTGOMERY -- A new joint legislative committee responsible for analyzing how the state responded to the COVID-19 pandemic -- and help it prepare for future emergencies -- met for the first time on Thursday. “This is a fact-finding, not a fault-finding committee,” Sen. Tim Melson, R-Florence, said. He's a co-chair of the Alabama Pandemic Response and Preparedness Committee, which includes many of the state's top leaders and will put together a report on lessons learned in the last 15 months. “The goal of this commission is to move forward,” Senate President Pro Tem Greg Reed, R-Jasper, said.  “We don’t need to throw rocks about what we maybe should have done, or could have done, or what we did." Read more.

by Caroline Beck, Alabama Daily News