November 22, 2020 - Giving Thanks

Giving Thanks

November 22, 2020

Tomorrow marks the beginning of a national week of Thanksgiving. Despite the anxiety and suffering that 2020 has brought, we have so much to be grateful for. When I began this newsletter last May, I was angry at those who refused to accept responsibility for selfishly infecting the rest of us. Seven months later, my anger has turned to admiration and gratitude for the courageous selflessness of medical first responders who put their lives on the line every day to protect us. I am also grateful to so many of you, who have shown the willingness to sacrifice in smaller, but no less consequential ways. 

Not surprisingly for a Sunday, we broke the 4-day string of 2,000+ cases, recording 1,798 (incl. 308 probables). Unfortunately, there were just 7,200 reported tests, resulting in a single-day positivity rate of 25%. The 7-day moving average continues to hover around 21.5%, which places Alabama squarely in the top 10 highest in the nation.

Hospitalizations resumed their climb, hitting 1,332 statewide patients in only 98 reporting hospitals, compared with 1,300 in 96 hospitals yesterday. 

Meanwhile, the United States continues to battle a raging fire of infections throughout all regions of the country. Consider this stunning fact - it took 72 days for the U.S. to reach its first million cases, but just 6 days to go from 11 million to 12 million. At nearly 200,000 new cases per day, this is what exponential growth looks like. 

The Pfizer vaccine is currently awaiting emergency use authorization from the F.D.A. and Moderna is expected to file its application in the coming week. Both vaccines are expected to be approved for emergency use by mid-December. This could signal the beginning of the end of this pandemic, but remember this word of caution from experts in the field:  Vaccines alone will not end this pandemic; only vaccinations will do so. In other words, the fate of this pandemic will be determined by how quickly vaccines can be distributed and administered, and by how many people are willing to accept them. 

After tonight, I’m going to take a break through Thanksgiving, but I will return next Sunday with a weekly update. In the meantime, please take care and stay safe.  The totals:

11/9 -   1190

11/10 - 1720

11/11 - 2070

11/12-  2000

11/13 - 2980

11/14 - 2226

11/15 - 1979

11/16 - 1410

11/17 - 1616

11/18 - 2638

11/19 - 2424

11/20 - 2463

11/21 - 2335

11/22 - 1798

Jefferson County had 291 cases today, followed by Madison County with 112 cases and Bibb County (population 22,394) with a record-breaking 100 cases, all of which were confirmed with a PCR test.