Coronavirus

Health Officials Hope End of Mask Mandate Won’t Lead to Spread of Influenza

The number of influenza cases has been extremely low this year, medical and public health officials say, in part thanks to protective measures that are being taken against Covid. And officials say they hope there will not be an increase in the number of flu cases when one of those measures -- the state’s mask mandate -- is lifted on April 9. "The flu season typically peaks in January and February, when the number of cases is through the roof," said UAB Family Medicine Dr. Stephen Russell. He said he can count on one hand the number of adult patients he has seen with flu this season. Read more.

by Virginia MacDonald

Alabama Plans To Open Vaccine Eligibility By May 1, But Hesitancy Remains A Problem

Health officials in Alabama expect to expand COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to all adults by May 1, according to Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris. But he said that may be a challenge because many are reluctant to be vaccinated. In a Friday press conference, Harris said about one-third of adults in Alabama are hesitant to get the vaccine. “At this point, we’ve had enough demand out there that it’s hard to know if a county is not getting vaccinated … because they can’t find [the] vaccine, or is it because they don’t want to take the vaccine? I think we’re going to soon have enough product available that we’ll be able to make some determinations about that,” Harris said. The state plans to educate hesitant populations about the vaccine, but Harris said ultimately, friends and family will have the ability to “normalize” the vaccine. Read more.

by Miranda Fulmore, WBHM

More than 2 Million Doses of Vaccine Sent to Alabama, Half a Million People Fully Vaccinated

More than 2 million doses of vaccine for the coronavirus have been delivered to the state, and more than half a million Alabamians have completed their shots, the state Department of Public Health reported Friday. The agency said 2,021,465 doses have been shipped to the state, and 1,364,631 have been administered. A total of 523,264 people have finished their shots of the two-dose Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or the single-shot Johnson & Johnson product. Friday's daily update by ADPH listed 531 new cases of COVID-19 over the past 24  hours, bringing the state's total to 510,579 and the daily average for the past week to 523. Read more.

by BirminghamWatch

Biden Administration Pushes to Vaccinate All American Against COVID-19

The three COVID-19 vaccines authorized for emergency use in the U.S. are safe and effective is the message from President Biden to encourage more people to take the vaccine. “It’s just essential that everyone gets connected with vaccination,” said Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, senior advisor for the president’s COVID-19 response team. “That’s how we’re going to get to our new normal. That’s how we’re going to be able to reopen schools … reunite with our families, reopen our businesses, get our economy going again, and to be able to gather together.” Clinics and hospitals in Alabama have administered the two-shot vaccines from drug companies Pfizer and Moderna since December. The distribution of a one-shot vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson began this month. But Alabama has been consistently near the bottom among states for vaccines administered per capita. Read more.

by Andrew Yeager, WBHM

COVID-19 Relief for Alabama Education Totals More Than $4B

Alabama K-12 schools are getting another $2 billion of federal relief funding from the President Joe Biden-pushed American Rescue Plan Act, state officials said Wednesday. That's on top of $1.1 billion schools received from the first two rounds of federal relief. In all, federal relief money to K-12 and higher education in Alabama will total about $4.5 billion in the three approved by Congress in the last year. About $3.2 billion of that is for K-12 alone, with much of it going directly to local school districts, according to Kirk Fulford, deputy director of the Legislative Services Agency’s Fiscal Division. “The investment of these funds is going to be critical,” Rep. Bill Poole, R-Tuscaloosa, said during a presentation Wednesday to the House education budget committee. Read more.

by Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News

Hospitalization Rate for COVID-19 Falls to Lowest Level in 11 Months

The number of people being treated for COVID-19 in Alabama hospitals has fallen to the lowest point in 11 months, according to Thursday's update by the state Department of Public Health. There were 364 people being treated for the coronavirus as inpatients at 106 hospitals across the state on Wednesday. That is the lowest number since a count of 360 last April 19. The state reached a peak of 3,084 on Jan. 11. ADPH reported 572 new cases of COVID-19 over the most recent 24-hour period. That left an average of 511 new cases a day over the past week, the lowest since an average of 448 for the week ended last June 10. The highest average was 4,280 a day on Jan. 11. Read more.

by BirminghamWatch

Rate of COVID-19 Deaths in Alabama Continues to Fall

As more and more Alabamians get their vaccinations for COVID-19, the rate of deaths attributed to the virus keeps falling. In BirminghamWatch’s periodic analysis of COVID data, the 7-day average of deaths reported to the Alabama Department of Public Health has fallen to 20.14 per day. That’s less than half of where the average stood at the beginning of March and a whopping 87% below the peak average of 154.29 per day set Jan. 29. Read more.

by Robert Carter

UAB Medicine Opens New Vaccination Site in Center Point

A new location for Jefferson County residents to receive COVID-19 vaccine will open Friday in Center Point. UAB Medicine announced Tuesday that AOH Cathedral of the Cross, located at 1480 Center Point Parkway, would be the latest vaccination site to be operated by UAB. The announcment comes on the heels of Gov. Kay Ivey’s expansion of the list of people who are eligible to receive the vaccine. Starting next Monday, March 22, anyone aged 55 or older is eligible, in addition to those with intellectual or developmental disabilities. The move by UAB expands a growing list of places where vaccinations are available, including Sam’s Club stores; CVS, Walgreen’s and some independent pharmacies; the Alabama Department of Public Health; and some health care clinics. UAB Medicine now operates four vaccination sites: AOH Cathedral of the Cross, Hoover Metropolitan Stadium, Parker High School and UAB Hospital-Highlands. Read more.

by Robert Carter

488 New Cases, Eight Deaths from COVID-19

There were 488 new cases of COVID-19 and eight deaths from the disease in Tuesday's daily update by the state Department of Public Health. The report raised the number of cases in Alabama to 508,717 over the course of the pandemic. The state has averaged 585 new cases a day over the past week. There have been 10,337 deaths in the state from the coronavirus since the pandemic began a year ago. Read more.

by BirminghamWatch

Take a Breath and Start Planning: Alabama Cities, Counties Getting Millions in Federal Aid

Alabama’s counties and municipalities will soon receive millions of dollars — some tens of millions of dollars — under the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act approved last week.  While exact guidance and rules for spending haven’t yet been issued from the U.S. Department of Treasury, the act makes clear the money can be used beyond costs specific to the coronavirus pandemic. “We’re telling them to take a breath and to begin thinking about how to best use this opportunity for legacy-type programs,” Greg Cochran, executive director of the Alabama League of Municipalities, told Alabama Daily News about the group’s guidance to cities and towns. Read more.

by Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News