Health Experts Warn Alabama May See Another COVID-19 Surge; Fauci Is Optimistic About A Vaccine
Health experts at the University of Alabama at Birmingham warn that Alabama could see another surge of COVID-19 in the coming weeks. This comes as the number of new daily cases in the state continues to tick upward.
“Unfortunately, we’re now heading up towards higher levels [of COVID-19 caseloads] than we’ve ever seen before,” said Dr. Michael Saag, a UAB infectious disease doctor. “Positivity rates [of tests] in Alabama are almost up to 25% now. That means one in four tests are coming back positive.”
Saag said this indicates widespread community spread. He said the goal is to have a positivity rate of less than 5%.
Meanwhile, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country’s top infectious disease expert, said that he predicts “with some degree of certainty” that in the next four to six weeks officials will have some answers to the question of vaccines.
“I feel cautiously optimistic that we will have a safe and effective vaccine, even though you can never make absolute predictions when it comes to vaccinology,” Fauci said during UAB’s COVID-19 Research Symposium.
Fauci says he feels cautiously optimistic because the data from animal models and phase one trials show that some of the vaccines “induce a degree of neutralizing antibody that is comparable if not exceeding what we see in natural infection in convalescent plasma.”
As for which vaccine could be the winning antidote – that’s still unclear.
In the meantime, Fauci said the National Institutes of Health is recommending that certain patients use the drugs Remdesivir and Dexamethasone as therapeutic treatments.
COVID-19 With Flu
Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, UAB’s director of infectious diseases, said they’ve already seen one patient who has tested positive for both the flu and COVID-19.
“I think the good news is that if you look at the Southern Hemisphere, which of course experiences their flu season before ours, they’ve actually had a pretty light season,” said Marrazzo. “Suggesting that some of the interventions they made to prevent COVID actually worked to prevent flu.”
Marrazzo said the best case scenario is if Alabamians get a flu vaccine while maintaining other COVID-19 preventive measures like hand hygiene, masking and social distancing. She said they hope to have access to rapid diagnostic tests that can detect the flu and COVID-19 soon.
Editor’s Note: UAB holds WBHM’s broadcast license, but our news and business departments operate independently.
Does Congress or the president hold war powers? Here’s what to know
President Trump's decision to launch airstrikes on Iran's nuclear facilities without first consulting Congress has drawn sharp criticism from lawmakers who say the move bypasses their constitutional authority to declare war.
U.S. Supreme Court allows — for now — third-country deportations
A federal judge had previously said people must get at least 15 days to challenge their deportations to countries they're not originally from.
Democratic senators rent space at the Kennedy Center to host a Pride event
A group of Democratic senators and Hamilton producer Jeffrey Seller are hosting a Pride celebration at the Kennedy Center Monday evening. But the Kennedy Center has nothing to do with programming it.
What to know about Jeff Bezos’ upcoming Venice wedding — and the protests against it
Bezos will soon marry Lauren Sánchez in Venice. Protesters say the city, already grappling with overtourism, is putting the wedding over their needs — which city officials and wedding organizers deny.
Emmy nominations voting ends tonight. Here’s what our critic hopes will make the cut
Emmy voters have until tonight to send in their picks for nominees. Here's what NPR TV critic Eric Deggans thinks they should be voting for.
Iran attacks a U.S. base in Qatar
A U.S. defense official confirmed that the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar "was attacked by short-range and medium-range ballistic missiles originating from Iran" and said there were no casualties.
