June 2, 2021 - Walk Humbly

Walk Humbly

June 2, 2021

Tuesday, June 1 was the unofficial first day of summer in Alabama. Schools were out, beaches were packed and the air of celebration seemed palpable after nearly 18 months of pandemic-fueled misery. There is a collective assumption that the deadly virus has been defeated and the pandemic is over. The truth is more nuanced, of course.

On Tuesday, there were 640 new reported cases in Alabama and today, there were 553 more new cases. Since ADPH no longer issues reports during weekends and holidays, the total for Tuesday included the sum of the totals on the preceding Saturday, Sunday and Monday. The high total for today is more difficult to explain, but I suspect that testing centers were busier than usual on the first business day following the long weekend. The daily average for the last 7 days is 252 new cases per day, representing a 9% decline from the 7-day moving average for the prior 7 days (277 per day). Our daily average declined at a slower pace than the national average (28%) over the last 7 days.

As of yesterday, our hospitalization rate in Alabama was 2.63 patients per reporting hospital (263 patients in 100 hospitals). One week ago, our hospitalization rate was 2.55 patients per reporting hospital. Alabama was one of just 9 states that reported an increase in hospitalizations over the prior week. Overall, the hospitalization rate in the U.S. dropped 15% compared to the prior week.

President Biden on Wednesday declared June a “national month of action”, urging Americans to get vaccinated. The President has set a goal of getting at least one shot into the arms of 70% of adults by July 4. As part of the effort, the White House revealed a broad array of incentives, including free food delivery, baseball tickets, Xboxes and chances to win cruise tickets, groceries for a year and free airline flights. Anheuser-Busch announced it will offer a $5 virtual credit card toward the purchase of a beer to every American adult once the 70% goal has been met. So far, 63% of adult Americans have received at least one dose.

Alabama, unfortunately, is not doing its part for the cause of free beer. In the last week, an average of only 3.7K doses per day were administered, a 71% decrease over the week before. Alabama has administered at least one dose to 1,766,784 people, covering 42.2% of the eligible 12 and older population and only 36.0% of the state’s entire population. At least 1,433,267 people have been fully vaccinated, or 29.2% of the entire population.

Still, compared with much of the rest of the world outside the United States, Alabama has every reason to be grateful. Deep into the second year of this pandemic, the rise of variants and the lack of access to vaccines have plunged many countries into despair. Argentina, Malaysia, South Africa and others have reimposed lockdowns. Thailand and Taiwan, which kept the virus in check for much of 2020, have closed schools, restaurants and nightclubs in the face of new waves. India’s catastrophic second wave has killed more than 3,000 people every day for the past month and experts believe the true toll is far greater (still well below the daily U.S. death toll of 4,000+ in January).

Yes, our long national nightmare is gradually receding, but things are getting worse in many parts of the world. We would do well to walk humbly, assist other nations generously, and pray that the virus does not return later in the year. The totals:

5/20 - 339

5/21 - 443

5/22 - 255

5/23 - 196

5/24 - 132

5/25 - 306

5/26 - 269

5/27 - 346

5/28 - 228

6/1 - 640

6/2 - 553