Category: Coronavirus
Light at the End of the Tunnel for JeffCo Entertainment Venues
The Jefferson County Department of Health order that banned the opening of entertainment venues is set to expire at midnight Saturday, June 6.
The county will then fall under the statewide order issued on May 21 by the state health officer. That order includes rules for entertainment venues, including social distancing, limited occupancy rates, sanitation requirements and use of facial masks by employees.
Though the order prohibiting operation of entertainment venues will expire Saturday night, unincorporated areas of Jefferson County will remain under a curfew from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. daily.
Read more.
COVID-19 Cases Being Undercounted Because of Computer Glitch
(Updates with comments urging people who take part in large gatherings such as protests to take precautions against spreading the coronavirus.)
COVID-19 cases reported by the Alabama Department of Public Health have been incomplete this week, and more people have contracted the disease than the numbers being reported on the department’s website show.
The problem comes from an overwhelmed national surveillance system, which has caused delays in obtaining information, according to an email from Assistant State Health Officer Dr. Karen Landers in response to BirminghamWatch questions.
“Once the issue is resolved, more cases will be added to the data set which will show an increase in cases,” she said. Read more.
Alabama Adds 228 Cases of COVID-19, 7 Deaths Tuesday
Alabama ended Tuesday with 18,474 confirmed cases of COVID-19, up just 228 cases from Monday’s total. The state also listed 297 probable cases of the disease. Seven more people died Tuesday, for a total of 651 confirmed deaths and 2 probable cases since the pandemic began. Read more.
New Jefferson County Health Department Map Paints COVID-19 Cases in Broad Strokes
The Jefferson County Department of Health has released COVID-19 numbers by areas in the county, but not down to the ZIP code level that local officials and the media have been requesting.
Health department officials have said releasing information by ZIP code would violate federal medical privacy laws. So, they created regions, which can include one or more ZIP codes, that take in 20,000 or more people where there have been at least 10 confirmed cases of COVID-19.
The material does show some areas where the coronavirus has penetrated more deeply, including several western, southwestern and north-central areas of the county and sections of Birmingham, but the concentration is lighter in other areas. Read more.
Alabama COVID-19 Count Tops 18,000 Mark
State health officials reported 294 new cases of COVID-19 in Alabama on Monday, bringing the overall total to 18,246.
The Alabama Department of Public Health also reported 14 deaths Monday and said 644 people have died of the disease since the coronavirus pandemic began.
Mobile still leads the state in confirmed cases, reporting 2,271 cases and 118 deaths.
Read more.
Alabama Reports 593 More COVID-19 Cases Sunday, Nears 18,000 Total Cases
Alabama added 593 confirmed COVID-19 cases Sunday, and 12 more people died. The Alabama Department of Public Health reported 17,952 confirmed cases and 289 probable cases late Sunday. It also reported 630 confirmed deaths from the disease and two probable deaths. Read more.
Alabama’s COVID-19 Cases Increase by … 58?
Yep. After a week when new COVID-19 cases most days hovered around 500 – and one day 664 new cases were reported – the total Saturday rose by only 58 cases. Unfortunately, that doesn’t indicate that the disease has dropped drastically and suddenly, but that the state changed the way it reports cases. Read more.
‘God Brought Me Out’ Says Man Who Survived COVID-19
About six months ago, Ron Thomas became obsessed with walking.
The 67-year-old Hoover resident says he was in good shape, had no health issues and was not overweight. But something moved him to get moving.
“While I was walking, I would be praying,” he said. “I would say, ‘God, I don’t know what you’re preparing me for but, whatever it is, I thank you.’”
After battling the novel coronavirus, Thomas is thankful to be alive. Despite the disproportionate rate of death from COVID-19 among African Americans, particularly men, Thomas went from being too weak to lift his head to raising his hands in praise.
“I truly believe,” he said of his daily walks, “God was preparing me for this fight against the coronavirus.” Read more.
More Stories From the Pandemic
Facing Life With Celebration, Caution After COVID-19 Recovery
Birmingham Health Care Worker Who Caught Virus ‘Had a Feeling That Things Weren’t Normal’
Montgomery, Walker Counties Lead State in New Cases; Alabama Total Hits 17,301
On Friday, 501 more people in Alabama tested positive for coronavirus and 19 people died. The update brought the total of coronavirus cases diagnosed in the state to 17,301 as of midnight Friday. A total of 610 people have died since the pandemic hit Alabama in mid-March, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health. Read more.
High Unemployment Hits Even Inmates; Prisons Losing Millions of Dollars
Nearly 40 million Americans are out of work. So are about 3,300 Alabama prison inmates eligible to work for private and public employers.
The Alabama Department of Corrections’ 22 work release and work centers, which include a center for women inmates based in north Birmingham, suspended operations March 18 because of the growing threat of the coronavirus. The suspension originally was slated to run through May 22, but it has not been lifted.
“At this time, the ADOC is working on a comprehensive plan to resume more standard operations but has not yet established a definitive timeline for resuming our work release and work center programs,” corrections information specialist Samantha Rose said in an email. Read more.
