Health

Note: This piece was written by State Rep. Tim Wadsworth. The pandemic Coronavirus outbreak is being treated by the federal government like the home mortgage market collapse in 2008. The federal government is instituting policies designed to reduce the number of hospitalized patients to prevent overwhelming hospital facilities and resources. Social distancing by closing of … Continued

Blood donations to U.S. blood banks are down severely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and physicians and blood donation centers are asking the public to step up.  More than 2,700 blood drives in the U.S. have been canceled due to the COVID-19 crisis, according to the American Red Cross, and individual donations are down by … 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=”eyJ0eXBlIjoiaW50ZXJuYWwiLCJwb3N0Ijo4MzEwOSwicG9zdF9sYWJlbCI6IlBhZ2UgODMxMDkgLSBNYXBwaW5nIENPVklELTE5IGluIEFsYWJhbWEiLCJ1cmwiOiIiLCJpbWFnZV9pZCI6ODMwNzYsImltYWdlX3VybCI6Imh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmFscmVwb3J0ZXIuY29tL3dwLWNvbnRlbnQvdXBsb2Fkcy8yMDIwLzAzL0Fkb2JlU3RvY2tfMzE4OTg5NTYyLXNjYWxlZC1lMTU4NDEzNzY2MzIwMi0xMDAweDYwMC5qcGVnIiwidGl0bGUiOiJNYXBwaW5nIENPVklELTE5IGluIEFsYWJhbWEiLCJzdW1tYXJ5IjoiT3VyIGludGVyYWN0aXZlIG1hcCBzaG93cyB3aGVyZSBDT1ZJRC0xOSBpcyBzcHJlYWRpbmcgaW4gdGhlIHN0YXRlLiIsInRlbXBsYXRlIjoidXNlX2RlZmF1bHRfZnJvbV9zZXR0aW5ncyJ9″] New cases were reported in several counties Thursday including Chambers, Walker, Talladega and Mobile Counties. Several cases were reported in Jefferson, Lee, … Continued

An administrative employee at a state prison has tested positive for COVID-19, and all staff who came into contact with the person are under a 14-day quarantine, the Alabama Department of Corrections announced Thursday. ADOC said in a statement that there are no positive COVID-19 cases “reported within the inmate population” but the statement did … Continued

UPDATE: Gov. Kay Ivey and the Alabama Department of Public Health said Friday that this public health order issued Thursday is not meant to apply to work-related gatherings of 25 people or more. Read more about how this applies to businesses here. Gov. Kay Ivey and the Alabama Department of Public Health on Thursday issued … 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

A teacher with the Elmore County School system has tested positive for COVID-19, according to the school system on Thursday.  “While it is unknown of the exact time the teacher contracted the virus, we are advised by the ADPH to contact everyone that she may have had contact with over the last two weeks,” Elmore … Continued

The Alabama Nursing Home Association said Thursday that two cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, have been confirmed in Alabama nursing homes, raising the fear that the virus is now spreading among some of Alabama’s most vulnerable. The cases are in Jefferson County at two separate nursing homes, APR confirmed. One … Continued