April 15, 2021
Since my last newsletter on Tuesday, Alabama has averaged 349 cases and 4,610 tests per day, including 421 cases and 4,962 tests today. Due to a higher volume of testing in the last 2 days, the positivity rate for those days was just 7.6%.
In 37 states, the daily average of new cases this week is higher than it was last week, while in 13 states, the daily average has fallen. In Alabama, the rate of new cases has increased, but the increase is partially distorted by the large number of backlogged cases reported 2 days ago. If the backlog is excluded, then the 7-day moving average of new cases in Alabama has increased by 4% over the prior week, which is lower than the 9.3% increase in the national average.
There are now 332 patients in 104 hospitals, or 3.19 patients per hospital. That is roughly the same hospitalization rate that existed earlier this week, but it is higher than the rate of 2.97 patients per hospital last week. Alabama’s per capita rate of 9 patients per 100K population is below the national average of 14 patients per 100K population.
The daily vaccination rate in Alabama continues to slowly rise. In the last week, an average of 33K doses per day were administered, a 13% increase over the week before. Alabama has administered at least one dose to 1,442,051 people, covering 36.6% of the eligible population and 29.4% of the State’s entire population (national average = 37.9%). At least 893,002 people have been fully vaccinated, or 18.2% of the entire population (national average = 23.6%). There are only 2 states with a lower percentage of fully vaccinated residents - Utah and Georgia.
According to the ADPH, 66.8% of Alabamians over the age of 75 are at least partially vaccinated; 61.4% of Alabamians of 65-74 year-olds; 40.3% of 55-64 year-olds; and 17.1% of 16-54 year-olds. I find it surprising and disheartening that the percentage of vaccinated persons 65 and older in Alabama is not higher. That means there are roughly 290,000 unvaccinated Alabamians who are 65 or older. It is an established fact that the Covid outcomes for persons over the age of 65 are much worse than the general population, so there are a lot of seniors in this state who are rolling the dice in a potentially deadly game.
The majority of those who are still rolling the dice are men, according to ADPH - 38.1% of Alabama women, but only 30.5% of all Alabama men, have received at least one dose so far. And, of course, most of those Alabama men who are still playing this deadly game also happen to be white. Whereas, the 6 counties that have vaccinated more than 40% of their populations are majority black counties in the Black Belt - Hale, Perry, Wilcox, Lowndes, Bullock and Marengo - the 6 counties that have vaccinated less than 25% of their populations are rural, predominantly white, counties - Russell, Chilton, Dale, Cleburne, Escambia and DeKalb. The totals:
4/2 - 400
4/3 - 349
4/4 - 194
4/5 - 109
4/6 - 196
4/7 - 338
4/8 - 464
4/9 - 318
4/10- 354
4/11- 311
4/12- 172
4/13- 1,432 (including 1,150 backlog)
4/14- 349
4/15- 421