Gov. Ivey Extends Mask Order Until March 5
Governor Kay Ivey has extended Alabama’s “Safer-At-Home” health order for an additional six weeks expiring on March 5. The order was to end on January 22.
People must continue to wear masks in public places, including schools and universities. It allows businesses to remain open, subject to social-distancing and sanitation guidelines.
The announcement comes following a surge in COVID-19 infections statewide. Numbers have declined in recent days, but from November to January, hospitalizations more than doubled, reaching a peak of more than 3,000 earlier this month that strained hospitals statewide.
“The mask mandate remains the one step that we can all take in order to keep some balance in our daily lives and stay healthy and safe,” Ivey said during a press conference Thursday.

Alabama health officer Dr. Scott Harris joined Ivey during the announcement. He addressed mounting frustration about the state’s administration of COVID-19 vaccines.
Alabama lags nationwide in the rate of vaccines that have been given per capita, but Harris said state and local health officials are working to speed up the process.
“People certainly have a right to expect that we could do things faster,” Harris said. “I think we can also do things faster, and so we have several things that we’re implementing to make sure that happens.”
He said county health departments are under instruction to divert resources and vaccinate people “all day, every day” and the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) will redistribute doses that go un-used within a certain time frame. ADPH will also partner with Walmart pharmacies to help distribute vaccine allocated to the state, though a start date was not announced.
According to Harris, as of Wednesday evening, providers statewide have administered 202,643 of the 446,150 doses that have been delivered to the state. He said there have been challenges and delays collecting data from local providers and reporting it to federal officials.
Harris said all remaining doses are either allocated for second doses or they are waiting to be administered to patients with appointments.
Peter Mohler named new University of Alabama president
Mohler comes to the role from Ohio State University where he served as executive vice president for research, innovation and knowledge and as chief scientific officer of the Wexner Medical Center. He also served as Ohio State’s acting president in 2023.
The Taliban has banned a lot of things … but chess?
A former chess coach says a member of the Taliban vice squad told him: "Playing chess is forbidden. Buying a chess set is forbidden. Even watching it — is forbidden." Why was the game banned?
How Apple turbocharged China’s development
A new book raises the specter that corporate offshoring of manufacturing may have undermined America's lead in technological innovation and even its national security.
Russia pummels Kyiv with drones and missiles, killing at least 15
The attacks was one of the largest on Ukraine's capital in months. It came as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy prepared for the G7 summit in Canada, where he is pushing for stronger sanctions on Russia.
Medicaid keeps getting more popular as Republicans aim to cut it by $800 billion
Americans across the political spectrum like Medicaid and think it should get more funding, not less, according to a new poll from health research organization KFF.
The essential listening guide to Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Tracks II: The Lost Albums’
It's a great day when your favorite artist releases a new record. But what if they released seven new records at once, full of music you didn't even know existed? That's what Bruce Springsteen is doing on his forthcoming box set Tracks II: The Lost Albums.