UAB and Johns Hopkins University are seeking volunteers for two COVID-19 treatment and prevention studies that involve the effectiveness of antibodies to treat early-stage coronavirus and to prevent those exposed to the virus from catching the disease. The trials are to assess whether blood plasma is effective as an outpatient treatment, and they are being conducted at the
The Alabama Department of Public Health reported 514 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Tuesday's daily update. The number of confirmed cases of the disease since the pandemic began in March rose to 126,813. Another 13,347 cases were listed as probable, for an overall total of 140,160. The agency reported 32 deaths, raising the total to 2,253 confirmed as resulting from the coronavirus, plus 134 listed as probable to bring the total to 2,387. The update showed 10 additional deaths in Jefferson County, eight in Lawrence County and six in Chilton County. An ADPH spokesman said those figures included a number of deaths that had been under investigation over the past several days in each of those counties. Read more.
The state added 504 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and three deaths in Monday's daily update by the Alabama Department of Public Health. The agency's COVID dashboard showed a tota of 126,299 confirmed cases of the disease and 13,160 cases listed as probable. The death count rose to 2,221, with an additional 134 shown as probable. The moving 14-day average fell to 653, the lowest since a two-week daily average of 694 on June 28. Read more.
Six months to the day after the first COVID-19 diagnosis in Alabama, the state on Sunday reported 125,795 confirmed cases of the disease and 2,218 deaths from it. There were 972 new confirmed cases of the virus and one confirmed death in the Alabama Department of Public Health's daily update on Sunday. The first case of the disease in Alabama was reported on March 13. It involved a Montgomery County resident that ADPH said at the time had traveled outside the state. Read more.
Voterama in Congress WASHINGTON — Alabama’s senators split along party lines this week as the Senate failed to reach 60 votes needed to advance a Republican-sponsored coronavirus relief package. Sen. Richard Shelby, R, voted to advance the bill, and Sen. Doug Jones, D, voted against it. Overall, the vote, held Thursday, was 52 for and 47 against. Consisting of $300 billion in new spending and $350 billion in recycled funds, S178 stopped well short of a competing $3.4 trillion measure passed by House Democrats in May. Read more.
Alabama recorded 726 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 13 deaths from the disease in the state Department of Public Health's 24-hour update on Saturday. The state's total for the coronavirus since the pandemic began in March rose to 124,823 confirmed cases and 12,823 probable cases for an overall count of 137,646. There have been 2,217 confirmed deaths and 133 listed as probable for COVID-19 for a total of 2,350. The moving seven-day average for confirmed new cases stood at 642, while the two-week daily average was 681, the lowest since an averageof 694 on June 28. Read more.
Since the coronavirus started spreading in March it has had a huge impact on Alabama nurses. “Their whole system, as the largest workforce in health care, was disrupted,” said John Ziegler, the executive director of the Alabama State Nurses Association. In response to COVID-19, hospitals stopped elective surgeries and shut down outpatient clinics, leaving some
There were 28 deaths from COVID-19 and 830 new confirmed cases of the disease in Friday's daily report by the Alabama Department of Public Health. The state's totals since the pandemic begain in mid-March rose to 124,097 cases and 2,204 deaths that were confirmed to have been from COVID-19. The Health Department lists another 13,298 cases and 125 deaths as probable. The average daily number of confirmed new cases stands at 687 over the past seven days, which is down from the average of 795 one week ago. The 14-day average dropped from 759 on Sept. 4 to 741 on Friday. The 28 new deaths was the highest number since 42 were reported on Aug 29. Read more.
Jefferson County Schools will begin accepting students back onto campuses in just more than a week. Superintendent Walter Gonsoulin announced on Facebook Thursday that the system would resume traditional learning starting Sept. 21. Grades will have staggered starts on the in-person learning. Students will go to class two days a week at first. Wednesdays will be set aside for remote learning for children and cleaning schools for staff. After two weeks, they will transition to five days a week on campus. Students who want to may continue with virtual learning. Read more.
The official COVID-19 data reported by the Alabama Department of Public Health continues to show improvement in most categories, though some questions remain about whether state totals are sometimes incorrect because of reporting issues. In BirminghamWatch’s weekly analysis of data reported by the Alabama Department of Public Health, the 7-day moving average of new COVID-19 cases for the period ending Wednesday was 622.86 per day. That average has fallen by two-thirds since its high July 19, but in recent weeks it has spiked in both directions because of issues in reporting of positive cases by various testing organizations. The ADPH said last week that some counties had reported higher numbers than normal because they were adding cases backlogged from earlier weeks, and some labs that use the newer antigen tests had not been reporting. Read more.
