Approximately 10% of Birmingham’s public works employees have tested positive for COVID-19, causing delays in city services such as trash pickup and grass cutting. Mayor Randall Woodfin, who recently required masks to be worn on city property, urged residents to get the vaccine and asked for patience while public works employees continue to catch up on their work. Read more.
The number of hospital beds occupied by COVID-19 patients in Alabama saw a major spike Monday, as the delta variant of the virus continues to spread quickly. The report from the Alabama Department of Health’s online dashboard showed 1,883 hospitalized COVID patients, up by 432 over Sunday’s total. That’s an increase of 29.8% in just one day. Read more.
If you think the recent spike in COVID pandemic data is concerning, a new study by a professor at UAB has just given you a lot more to worry about. Dr. Suzanne Judd, who teaches in the school’s Department of Public Health, has released a report that says Alabama could reach a peak of 13,000 new cases per day by the end of August. That number is roughly five times the number of new cases reported by the Alabama Department of Public Health on Thursday, more than triple the highest 7-day moving average recorded in early January, and more than 100 times the lowest 7-day average this year — a mark set just 24 days ago. Put another way, the number of new cases each day would multiply more than a hundredfold by Aug. 26, just 49 days after the low point of 121 new daily cases on July 6. Read more.
Melissa Humble and her husband moved back to Alabama in March 2020, just before much of the state shut down. Looking for a way to earn income and stay home to protect her immunocompromised spouse from COVID-19, Humble began baking and selling French macarons and other treats. HumbleBee Bakes is now a regular at farmers markets around Headland in Henry County, and Humble locally sources the fruit, jellies and eggs that go into her products. But the state’s laws regulating the cottage food industry were limiting. It capped gross sales at $20,000 a year and didn’t allow for Internet sales. Starting Monday, those restrictions will be eased under Senate Bill 160, approved in the spring. Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, sponsored the law change. “It takes the ridiculous shackles off of people who want to start home businesses,” Orr said. “This could be the first step, the incubation of new small businesses in the home." Read more.
As the daily average of new COVID cases topped 2,000 Thursday, Jefferson County Health Officer Dr. Mark Wilson said he has recommended to local officials that they consider universal mask use. "I am very concerned about our sharply rising number of COVID-19 cases, the highly contagious nature of the Delta variant and the increasing burden on our hospitals,” said Wilson, who has the authority to issue a countywide mask mandate. “Consideration should be given to universal mask use until the current surge in COVID-19 cases subsides,” he said. Read more. What a Difference a Month Makes: Average of New COVID Cases Increases 15-fold Since July 6
The number of new cases of COVID infections in Alabama took another big jump on Thursday, pushing the 7-day moving average past the 2,000 mark. That number has doubled in the past week, and it has increased by more than 17 times since the recent low set July 6. Read more.
MONTGOMERY — As students across the state prepare to go back to school, physicians are offering Alabama parents an opportunity to ask questions and get answers about vaccines, mask wearing and other COVID-19 best practices. The Medical Association of the State of Alabama is hosting a Facebook Live event Thursday at 4 p.m. in which doctors will be discussing the recent resurgence of the virus and what parents can expect as school starts back over the next month. Parents can submit questions during the event. The organization says the goal is to offer reliable medical advice from doctors to parents concerned by misinformation floating around social media. Read more.
When the month of July began, the COVID pandemic looked like it was well on its way to shrinking to controllable numbers. People across Alabama and the nation celebrated the Fourth of July holiday much as they had before the virus, crowding beaches and other vacation hotspots without wearing face masks. And the Alabama Department of Public Health cut back its daily reporting of pandemic data to three times a week — despite the threat of the Delta variant looming on the horizon. As July draws to a close, the picture of the pandemic has changed completely. The Delta variant has spread in full force, and the numbers of new cases and hospitalizations have skyrocketed. In the Birmingham Watch periodic analysis of current COVID data trends, the 7-day moving average of new cases stands at 1,931.43 per day, including an ADPH report of an additional 2,726 cases on Wednesday. Read more.
MONTGOMERY— State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris recommended Tuesday that even those who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 wear masks indoors as virus cases and hospitalizations rise rapidly across Alabama. Harris’ recommendation comes at the same time the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control’s recommendations that vaccinated people should return to wearing masks indoors. Read more.
UPDATED AUG. 6: Leaders with several school systems in the area have decided that students, faculty and visitors must wear masks in school facilities. So far, Birmingham, Bessemer, Fairfield, Homewood and now Hoover schools have decided to require masks. Jefferson County Schools have decided to make masks optional in schools this year. Read more.
