Health

Members of a Fairhope church who were quarantined in an Israeli hotel arrived back in the U.S. early Tuesday morning after testing negative for COVID-19, a church spokesman said Tuesday.  The 13 church members from 3Circle Church have chosen to complete a “medically-supervised quarantine,” wrote church spokesman Zach Adamson in a statement Tuesday.  “Our team … Continued

Mobile’s Archbishop Thomas J. Rodi in a statement Monday issued directives meant to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus during liturgical celebrations.   Rodi said that he had hoped previous statements sent to clergy, parents and students at Catholic schools on ways to prevent the spread of the virus would be enough.  “I was not … Continued

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine announced Monday that a NASA employee in California has tested positive for the coronavirus. Bridenstine also announced plans to use telework to limit exposure if the virus becomes more of a threat. “On Sunday, March 8, we received confirmation an employee at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley tested positive … Continued

As lawmakers and press roamed the halls of the Alabama State House on Thursday, three families were gathered in an office, all eager to be heard by their representatives and all fighting for the same cause.  SB165, a bill called the Compassion Act, sponsored by Sen. Tim Melson, R-Florence, would make Alabama the 34th state … Continued

A vaccine for coronavirus is making its way through the testing process, but will likely take at least a year before it’s ready for the market, said a University of Alabama at Birmingham physician on Friday.  Dr. Molly Fleece, an infectious disease expert at the UAB, told reporters at a press conference Friday that there … Continued

Editor’s note: This story was updated at 11 a.m. Friday with news on church members’ testing.  A Fairhope church says 13 members are being quarantined in a Bethlehem hotel after a previous visitor and 7 hotel workers tested positive for Coronavirus.  Al.com reported Friday that the church members were tested for coronavirus Friday.  In a … Continued

It was unclear for a time Thursday whether Alabama’s public health lab in Montgomery could test for coronavirus or not.  Conflicting statements Thursday from an Alabama Department of Public Health physician and a tweet an hour later from the department’s official Twitter account made it uncertain whether the state’s lab can or cannot test for … Continued

U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby on Thursday applauded the Senate’s passage of an emergency supplemental funding package to deal with the coronavirus. The legislation provides $8.3 billion in total resources to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the COVID-19 strain coronavirus. “I am pleased Congress has swiftly passed this emergency supplemental to combat the dangerous Coronavirus,” … Continued