COVID-19

News / National / State

Alabama COVID-19 cases rising at pace not seen since early April

After a dip in new reported COVID-19 cases beginning around April 12, the number of new cases being reported in Alabama per day is trending back up again as the state on Tuesday reported its largest daily increase since April 9. The rise in cases comes as the death toll in Alabama surpassed 300 on … Continued

Chip Brownlee

May 5, 2020

ACLU of Alabama: Test Mobile County Jail inmates, not just workers

The ACLU of Alabama on Tuesday expressed concern that, while Mobile County Jail staff will be tested for COVID-19 following an outbreak of the virus there, inmates will not. Mobile County Sheriff Sam Cochran and Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson on Tuesday announced that after 38 inmates and 30 staff tested positive for COVID-19 a decision … Continued

Eddie Burkhalter

May 5, 2020

State superintendent says challenges await when students return to class

Alabama State Superintendent Eric Mackey said Tuesday that as public schools plan to reopen for in-person instruction in the fall, school nurses could play a critical role in slowing the spread of the COVID-19 virus that shuttered them. Mackey, speaking with reporters and members of the Alabama House Democratic Caucus in a webinar session Tuesday, said … Continued

Eddie Burkhalter

May 5, 2020

Alabama lab authorized by FDA to do widespread COVID-19 testing

Golden Point Scientific Labs of Hoover has doubled its testing capacity and received FDA authorization to conduct widespread testing for COVID-19, giving health providers and community organizations a new alternative to identify those who have been exposed to the virus. Golden Point Scientific Labs will partner with a range of agencies and providers to offer … Continued

May 5, 2020

Senate committee OKs bill to extend unemployment for six months

On Monday legislature returns to work after a lengthy absence due to the coronavirus crisis. The Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee met on Monday. The committee gave a favorable report to a Labor Department bill, HB351. The committee amended the bill so that during a state of emergency Alabamians who became unemployed can draw … Continued

Brandon Moseley

May 5, 2020

Senate bill would shield businesses, other entities from coronavirus lawsuits

The Alabama Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee on Monday gave a favorable report to a bill that would make it harder for persons to sue others for their coronavirus infection. SB351 is sponsored by Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee Chairman Arthur Orr, R-Decatur. This bill would provide civil immunity for business entities, health … Continued

Brandon Moseley

May 5, 2020

National Federation of Independent Business wants changes to Paycheck Protection Program

A Tennessee-based nonprofit advocacy group for small businesses on Monday asked the federal government to make changes to the Paycheck Protection Program, which provides loans to COVID-19-impacted small businesses. The National Federation of Independent Business in a letter to the U.S. Small Business Administration and the U.S. Treasury Department on Monday recommended several changes the … Continued

Eddie Burkhalter

May 5, 2020

Sessions calls for “Pearl Harbor-like” Congressional investigation of “Chinese cover-up” of coronavirus

Monday, former Senator Jeff Sessions (R-Alabama) renewed his call for an investigation of a Chinese coverup of the coronavirus. Following the devastating Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Congress held a lengthy series of hearings investigating what happened and why the U.S. Navy and Army commanders on the island were so … Continued

Brandon Moseley

May 5, 2020

Seventh Alabama inmate tests positive for COVID-19

An inmate at the St. Clair Correctional Facility has tested positive for COVID-19, becoming the seventh state inmate to test positive for the virus, the Alabama Department of Corrections announced late Monday. The man tested positive “while he was at a local hospital where he received care for a non-COVID-19 related preexisting medical condition,” ADOC’s … Continued

Eddie Burkhalter

May 4, 2020

Widely cited model projects eightfold increase to Alabama death toll

The COVID-19 model that has been widely cited by officials in Alabama and the White House’s coronavirus task force has been updated again, delivering a dire new projection that Alabama could see an eight-fold increase to its death toll by August and a new peak by late June or early July. But for Alabama, in … Continued

Chip Brownlee

May 4, 2020