COVID Decline: Alabama Almost Down to Low Virus Transmission Rate
For the first time in more than four months, Alabama is very near a level of community COVID-19 transmission that public health officials have been hoping for. In BirminghamWatch’s periodic analysis of the state’s pandemic data, the two-part criteria for officially rating the transmission level as “low” has almost been met. The positivity rate — the percentage of all COVID tests in a 7-day period that return a positive result — is at 4.6%. The rate has been below the required 5% threshold for more than a week. But the 7-day average of total cases per 100,000 residents isn’t yet at the required level, though it is very close. It’s now at 10.02, just above the 9.99 mark classified as “low.” The last time the community transmission level met both criteria for a “low” classification was in early July, and then it was only for three days as the positivity rate dipped below 5%. On July 5 and 6, the cases-per-100,000 average reached 2.41, the lowest reading since the pandemic began in early 2020. But while the statewide transmission level is the best it’s been in months, county-by-county data tells a different story. Eight of Alabama’s 67 counties are still in the highest of the four classifications, which means that one or both criteria are above the top thresholds. Among them is nearby Walker County, which has a moderate 8.9% positivity rate and a high 7-day cases-per-100,000 average of more than 100. Read more.
