State extends "Safer-at-home" COVID-19 restrictions until July 31

Gov. Kay Ivey and state Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris announced on June 30 the extension of the state’s “Safer at Home” order regarding the COVID-19 outbreak until July 31.

The most recent change in the order, issued May 21, was set to expire on July 3, but evidence of further community spread of the COVID-19 disease prompted state officials to keep the current order in place through at least the end of July.

See the May 21 order that is being extended here.

The number of COVID-19 cases in Alabama has risen to more than 30,000 with more than 10,000 of those cases being confirmed in the past 14 days, Harris said.

Some of that increase in cases can be attributed to increased testing, but the percentage of people getting tested who are registering as positive also is increasing, which is evidence of increased transmission of the disease, he said. Currently, just under 11% of people getting tested are testing positive for the disease, which is the highest level yet, Harris said.

Additionally, hospitals across the state are showing their highest numbers of people being hospitalized with the disease since the outbreak began, with more than 750 people being treated in Alabama hospitals today, Harris said. There are about 300 more people in the hospital who are suspected of having COVID-19 but waiting confirmation from test results, he said.

There are 275 intensive care unit beds still available statewide, Harris said. Dr. Michael Saag, a professor of medicine in the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Division of Infections Diseases, said Friday that health care systems in the state are beginning to be stretched and he is concerned about their ability to meet all patient needs if the transmission of COVID-19 continues at current rates.

Harris today said that more than 900 Alabamians and more than 130,000 Americans have died from the COVID-19 disease since late February.

Saag said that if nothing is done, Alabama is likely to see another 2,000 or so deaths due to COVID-19 between now and the end of September. But if people will simply wear masks and maintain proper social distancing, that number could drop to about 1,300 deaths, he said.

Harris said that about 75% of the deaths have been people age 65 or older. One out of every nine people in that age bracket who are infected with the disease is dying, he said.

People age 65 and older represent only 17% of the COVID-19 cases in Alabama, he added.

Harris pleaded with Alabamians to take the disease seriously. “Our state has opened back up in many ways, but this is not the time to let our guard down,” he said. “That’s particularly true for those who are senior citizens and those who have chronic health problems.”

He and the governor both urged people to stay home if they feel sick and to wash their hands frequently and wear face coverings in public even if they are not sick.

“We know face coverings aren’t perfect and they don’t prevent everything, but we do know that they limit your chance of giving infection to someone else if you have it, and we know many of the people who can spread the disease don’t even know that they’re infected,” Harris said.

There are so many uncertain things happening in the world right now, but this is one area where people actually have power to effect change, Harris said. “We all know what we need to do.”

Ivey said she heard much speculation that much of the current spread of the disease is due to people showing disregard for the disease over the Memorial Day weekend.

“If that’s true, that’s alarming,” she said. “We have to do better as we come up on the Fourth of July Independence Day."

She loves to celebrate the nation’s birthday as much as anyone, but social distancing recommendations still apply, even at the beach or the lake, she said.

“If we continue going in the wrong direction and our hospitals are not able to handle capacity, we’re going to reserve the right to come back and reverse course,” Ivey said. “Living with COVID-19 has become our new normal, and we should expect to live with it as long as it takes until the cases start to decline or until our medical experts find a vaccine.”

Ivey said the stay-at-home order issued on April 3 was designed to give the state time to respond to the outbreak and hospitals to prepare and hopefully not become overwhelmed. However, she never intended for the state to be shut down for months on end because that is unsustainable and she believes people can’t have lives without having a livelihood.

That is why restrictions were relaxed with the subsequent “safer-at-home” orders, she said.

However, “while we are not overwhelmed yet, we should think that because our summer feels more normal than our spring that we are back to normal,” Ivey said. “The fact is, folks, we are still in the thick of this virus disease, and it is deadly.”

She and Harris could order people to wear masks, but that would be “next to impossible to enforce,” she said. Still, “you shouldn’t have to order somebody to do what is in your best interests and that of folks you care about — your family, friends and neighbors.”

Still, both Birmingham and Jefferson County currently have regulations in place requiring people to wear masks in public locations, with some exceptions.

Ivey said there are many viruses in our society already for which we work necessary practices into our daily lives, and we must do that with COVID-19 precautions as well.

“Personal responsibility means it’s everyone’s responsibility,” she said. “It takes all of us to be vigilant in adhering to these social distancing guidelines in order to stop the spread of this deadly disease. We must each do our part.”