Science

Benefits of Vaccines for Kids 5-11 Far Outweigh Risks, UAB Doc Says

The benefits of the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 5 to 11, which is slated to go to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for approval next week, far outweigh its risk to children, said Dr. David Kimberlin, co-director of UAB and Children's of Alabama's pediatrics division. He called his press conference Wednesday the most upbeat one in months, saying the delta variant of COVID-19 has receded. But the doctor warned that if another virus variant surfaces, the public should increase preventative measures. Kimberlin said vaccine data given Tuesday by an external advisory board to the FDA about the safety of vaccines for ages 5 to 11 is “incontrovertible.” Read more.

by Virginia MacDonald

Alabama’s COVID Deaths at Lowest Level Since August

The number of deaths in Alabama that are attributed to the COVID-19 virus has finally started to decrease in earnest, after averaging more than 100 per day as recently as a month ago. In BirminghamWatch’s periodic analysis of the state’s pandemic data, the 7-day moving average of deaths dropped into the teens Wednesday, now standing at 17.29 per day. The longer term 14-day average is still roughly double that number, checking in at 32.29, but is also in a decline. Both averages were at 100 or more in the latter part of September as the delta-variant surge swept through Alabama. As has been the case during the pandemic, deaths have lagged new COVID cases by about three to six weeks. The peak of the 7-day case average was reached on Sept. 1, while the peak of the deaths average came on Sept. 23. This follows the pattern of the original alpha-variant surge in December through February. Hospitalizations of COVID patients continues its steady decrease, with the Alabama Hospital Association reporting 482 inpatients as of Tuesday. Read more.

by Robert Carter

COVID-19, Federal Requirement Increases Alabama Medicaid Enrollment

Alabama’s Medicaid enrollment has continued record growth because of the COVID-19 pandemic and an ongoing federal requirement that people can’t be removed from the rolls. But the state also got extra money from the federal government and, for now, the program is costing the state less than it did before. However, at least one lawmaker is concerned costs could begin to rise, and the state is working now on projections for next year’s budget. Read more.

by Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News

Dropping COVID Case Rates Ease Pressure on Alabama Health Care System

The surge of COVID-19 that plagued Alabama and the nation over the summer continued its decline over the past week as summer gave way to fall. The number of new cases reported each day by the Alabama Department of Public Health has fallen by more than 60% since the beginning of October. The 7-day moving average fell to 784 on Wednesday, a drop of 12% in the past seven days. The longer-term 14-day average fell to 838.57, a decrease of almost two-thirds from Oct. 1. Since the Delta-induced summer surge peaked Sept. 1 with a 7-day average of 5,538, the new-case numbers have tumbled by more than 85%. The current level is still well above the low set just after Independence Day, 3½ months ago, when the average bottomed out at 121 cases per day. The steady decrease is also shown in the state’s hospitalization numbers. Read more.

by Robert Carter

As Vaccine Bills Threaten Lawsuits, Business Groups Line Up in Opposition

A north Alabama lawmaker wants to prohibit Alabama businesses and agencies from requiring their employees or patrons to be immunized. House Bill 31 also says that anyone fired or discriminated against because of their immunization status — it doesn’t specifically mention COVID-19 — can sue the business or entity, which range in the bill from amusement parks to zoos. “I feel like it’s my body, my choice,” Rep. Ritchie Whorton, a two-term Republican from Owens Cross Roads, told Alabama Daily News on Monday. “No one is going to tell me I have to put something in my body. It’s not right.” The bill isn’t yet available on the Legislature’s website, but copies are floating around Montgomery — and drawing opposition from some of Alabama’s most influential organizations. “(The Business Council of Alabama) is opposed to HB 31 and any similar legislation that opens Alabama businesses up to frivolous lawsuits,” BCA Vice President Susan Carothers told ADN. “Very few, if any, laws have been introduced in the Alabama Legislature with more onerous provisions against business than HB 31,” the Alabama Civil Justice Reform Committee said in a letter opposing the bill. Read more.

by Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News

“The Enemy Is Lurking in Our Bodies” — Women Veterans Say Toxic Exposure Caused Breast Cancer

The War Horse As the last troops leave the “forever wars,” doctors say they’re seeing more women veterans with breast cancer—younger than the national average. Read more.

by Kelly Kennedy, The War Horse

The Decline of Delta: Alabama’s COVID Case Daily Average Falls Below 1,000, Down 86% From Peak

The effects of the Delta variant of the COVID-19 virus have subsided in Alabama almost as quickly as they peaked. In a BirminghamWatch analysis of the state’s pandemic data, the 7-day moving average of new daily cases has fallen below the 1,000 mark, six weeks after it surpassed 5,500 — the highest reading since the pandemic began in March 2020. The Alabama Department of Public Health reported on Wednesday that the 7-day average stands at 893.14 new cases per day. That reading comes a day after dropping below 1,000 and is now roughly one-seventh of the record set Sept. 1. By comparison, the recent Delta surge took seven weeks to skyrocket from the previous low point of 121 cases per day on July 7 to the peak. And though the current level is still considerably higher than that low point, the downward direction of the curve is very close to the inverse of the upward slope in summer. Read more.

by Robert Carter, BirminghamWatch

Work Scheduled to Tear Down Cooper Green Parking Deck, Building New Clinic

Demolition of the old Cooper Green Hospital parking lot is expected to begin later this year or early next year to make way for building a new indigent care clinic in that location, officials with Jefferson County and the University of Alabama at Birmingham Health System announced Tuesday. Designs for the new clinic, planned to be about 150,000 square feet, are being worked on, and those involved hope it will be ready to open in 2½ to 3 years, David Randall, chief strategy officer for the UAB Health System, said during a press conference. The project is expected to cost between $55 million and $65 million, Randall said. Read more.

by Virginia Martin

COVID-19 Federal Funds in Alabama Total $46B, Contribute to Big 2021 Tax Revenues

About $46.8 billion. Billion with a B. That’s how much federal COVID-19 relief money has gone to Alabama residents, businesses and government agencies since the pandemic began. About $30.3 billion of that has been given directly to individuals and businesses to assist them, Kirk Fulford, deputy director of the Legislative Services Agency, told state lawmakers recently. About $6.3 billion was in the Paycheck Protection Program, forgivable loans to help businesses weather the economic drought caused by COVID-related shutdowns. And nearly twice that much, $12.6 billion, has gone directly to individuals in stimulus checks. The money had a big impact on the state’s record tax receipts for fiscal 2021, which ended last week, Fulford said. That’s especially true in the Education Trust Fund, where sales and income tax are the main contributors. Read more.

by Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News

COVID Hospitalizations in Alabama Drop Below 1,000 for First Time in 12 Weeks

The number of COVID-19 patients in Alabama hospitals has fallen below 1,000 for the first time since mid-July as case numbers continue to tumble since the peak from a summer surge of the delta variant. There were 970 patients being treated for the coronavirus in hospitals around the state on Friday, according to the Alabama Hospital Association. That is the lowest since a total of 957 on July 16, and down by about 66% since the inpatient count reached a peak of 2,890 on Sept. 1. The Alabama Department of Public Health reported 919 new cases of COVID in its daily update on Saturday. The state averaged 1,097 new cases a day over the past week, almost 77% below the average of 3,962 cases per day on Sept. 8. ADPH has reported 807,479 cases since the pandemic began in March 2020. Read more.

by Birmingham Watch