Alabama’s COVID Vaccination Rate Increases
After a slow start, Alabama’s rollout of the coronavirus vaccine is picking up pace, according to state Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris.
“Alabama as a whole has done a great job,” Harris said during a media call Thursday. “The past five weeks, we’ve given out well over 100,000 vaccines. And last week, even with all of the weather delays, it was our second best week that we have had so far.”
The state has administered more than 800,000 doses. Harris said federal programs are helping to increase supply and reach more residents.
Walmart, which recently began vaccinating residents in 74 Alabama locations, announced this week that it will soon expand to more stores. CVS Pharmacy also began offering vaccine appointments Thursday in select cities around the state.
Harris said starting next week, the state expects to receive anywhere from 90,000 to 100,000 doses a week from the federal government, but that still isn’t enough to vaccinate the close to 1.5 million residents who are currently eligible.
Alabama could get a boost if the one-shot Johnson and Johnson vaccine, which is easier to store and administer, is granted emergency use authorization by the federal government.
“One shot opens up a lot of doors for us,” Harris said. “There are a lot of logistical problems that get solved by having a single dose vaccine.”
Harris said he has heard concerns about the effectiveness of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, but said it is as effective at preventing death and serious illness from COVID-19 as the Pfizer and Moderna products.
Colombia’s lone Amazon port faces drying river and rising tensions with Peru
Colombia's only Amazon port town could soon be cut off from the river that keeps it alive. As drought and a shifting river spark a tense border dispute with Peru, locals are scrambling to adapt—and politicians are raising flags, literally.
Sunday Puzzle: Common denominator
NPR's Ayesha Rascoe plays the puzzle with Weekend Edition puzzlemaster Will Shortz along with listener Cynthia Rose of Littleton, Colorado.
South Korea says it has reached a deal with the US for the release of workers in a Georgia plant
More than 300 South Korean workers were detained in an immigration raid on Thursday. Presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik said South Korea plans to send a charter plane to bring the workers home.
Hitch a ride to the moon in a rusty old car and ‘The Couch in the Yard’
As the sun sets in a small town, a family loads up their rusty old car with the spare couch in their yard. When it breaks down in the mountains, what else is there to do but fly it to the moon?
The silent killer increases your risk of stroke and dementia. Here’s how to control it
New recommendations for early treatment for hypertension to prevent strokes, heart attacks and dementia come as an experimental medication is shown to lower blood pressure in hard to treat patients.
Are you a grandparent-to-be? Here’s some advice from those who came before you
Sept. 7 is National Grandparents Day. NPR readers shared the joys of becoming grandparents and offered some sage advice.
