Gov. Ivey has groups working on plan to get Alabama back to work
Gov. Kay Ivey today said she hopes to have a plan of action to restart Alabama’s economic engine by the end of the month but in the meantime encouraged Alabamians to continue to stay at home as much as possible and practice social distancing.
“All indications suggest it is working,” the governor said in a press conference in Montgomery. “It is imperative that we keep doing what we are doing. Now is not the time to let our guard down and pretend that things are back to normal.”
The Alabama Department of Public Health now has confirmed 3,811 cases of COVID-19 in the state. There have been 105 deaths reported, 73 of which have been confirmed related to COVID-19, according to the health department’s website.
That includes 619 cases, 16 reported deaths and 10 deaths confirmed related to COVID-19 in Jefferson County and 231 cases, seven reported deaths and five deaths confirmed related to COVID-19 in Shelby County, according to the state website.
There are about 400 people in Alabama hospitals who have tested positive for COVID-19 and another 600 or so people in hospitals who are in the process of being tested, state health officer Dr. Scott Harris said.
He is pleased to see people for the most part practicing social distancing and believes that has helped lessen the severity of the outbreak, he said. The demand for hospital beds is expected to reach its peak in about three or four days, and the demand for intensive care unit beds should reach its peak by April 20.
He believes the state has enough hospital beds to take care of people within hospitals rather than having to activate additional sites to house patients, even though contingency plans are in place, he said.
Since March 13, 210 people have been put in intensive care with COVID-19, and 132 of those have required ventilators, Harris said.
SURGE IN UNEMPLOYMENT
Meanwhile, more than 264,000 people have filed for unemployment benefits in Alabama in the past four weeks, Ivey said. That’s in stark contrast to a year ago, when 130,000 people filed for unemployment benefits over the course of 12 months, she said.
Maintaining the physical health of Alabamians is important, but so is their economic health, Ivey said. “We can do both things at the same time.”
The governor said she has multiple groups working to assess the economic situation and evaluating the best way to get businesses back up and running. “We want to get folks back to work as soon as we can, but we want to do it as smart as we can."
Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth is chairman of the Alabama Small Business Commission and is working with that group to find ways to restart the state’s economic engine, especially with small businesses, she said.
Alabama’s Congressmen in the U.S. House of Representatives each have agreed to set up working groups in their respective districts and report back to her with ideas on or before April 22.
At the same time, six members of her coronavirus task force are vetting ideas coming in from all over the state to put together a thoughtful, well-planned timeline to reopen the economy, Ivey said.
They will carefully integrate advice from the state health officer and a medical team of experts from throughout the state, she said.
On or before April 28, she and Harris will review all the recommendations so they can present an updated plan of action before the current stay-at-home order expires on April 30.
This should provide ample time for businesses to open in a safe and responsible manner, she said.
“This will be the roadmap that will help Alabama begin our road to recovery,” Ivey said.
The Alabama Department of Public Health reports that, since March 13, 625 health care workers in hospitals and doctors’ offices have been infected with COVID-19. Also, 182 people employed in long-term care facilities such as nursing homes and 194 people who live in long-term care facilities have been infected, according to the state’s website.
People in nursing homes are probably the most vulnerable people in the state right now, Harris said. African-Americans in Alabama also as a whole are more vulnerable and seem to be impacted more by COVID-19 due to higher rates of chronic health problems.
Ivey said state officials are concerned that as people go back to work there could be a resurgence of this virus this fall. Everyone has to be nimble enough to be able to deal with that should it occur, she said.