Chip Brownlee

Unemployment is surging in Alabama as businesses across the country have been forced close because of restrictions put in place to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. Just last week, more than 9,000 people applied for unemployment compensation in the state, according to the Alabama Department of Labor. Workers who lose their jobs because … Continued

It’s a sad and unfortunate result of the coronavirus outbreak, but you should not attend in-person church services, for the time being, the Alabama Department of Public Health advises. This guidance is true especially if your church congregation is larger than 25 people or if you’re an older person, the population most vulnerable to adverse … Continued

UPDATE: This story has been updated with new information from DCH Health System. The new information indicates that most of the 528 untested samples were not able to be tested because there was a lack of testable material, not because of an issue with sample storage during transport, which was initially cited by the hospital … Continued

Gov. Kay Ivey and the Alabama Department of Public Health said Friday that a public health order issued Thursday is not meant to apply to work-related gatherings of 25 people or more. “In order to keep Alabama going, we must keep Alabama businesses going to the best of our abilities,” Ivey said. “I fully support … Continued

Governors are requesting $150 billion from the federal government in direct aid to help their states fight the COVID-19 public health emergency. Since the outbreak began, governors have been leading the nation’s response to the outbreak of coronavirus and its potentially devastating impacts on the nation’s health care system. In a letter to congressional leadership, … Continued

The Jefferson County Department of Health on Thursday issued another executive public health order closing all nonessential businesses and further limiting gatherings of people to less than 10. “As cases have continued to increase in Jefferson County, we must take additional bold action to slow the spread of COVID-19,” said Dr. Mark Wilson, Jefferson County’s … Continued

The head of Alabama’s Hospital Association said Thursday that he fears the coronavirus outbreak could overwhelm Alabama’s health care system if the public doesn’t take social-distancing guidelines seriously. “My big, big concern is as this tsunami approaches us in the coming weeks, we are going to be challenged to have enough ventilators for the state … Continued

Twenty-seven new COVID-19 cases have been reported in Alabama Thursday, a 50 percent increase over the total Wednesday. The total number of novel coronavirus cases in the state is now 78. [visual-link-preview encoded=”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″] New cases were reported in several counties Thursday including Chambers, Walker, Talladega and Mobile Counties. Several cases were reported in Jefferson, Lee, … Continued

Several Alabama hospitals say they are struggling with testing supply shortages amid growing demand for testing in the state and a rising number of cases in 14 Alabama counties. East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika, near Auburn, and DCH Health System in Tuscaloosa both said Wednesday evening that they’re working hard to deal with hundreds … Continued