Alabama’s COVID-19 positivity rate has dropped into the single digits, while the number of individuals being treated for COVID-19-related illnesses in area hospitals continues to fall, according to the most recent data from the Alabama Department of Public Health.
The state’s current COVID-19 positivity rate is 8.1 percent, a significant decrease from a week ago and the first time the data point has been in the single digits since late May of this year. The positivity rate is the percentage of positive COVID-19 tests reported back to the state and offers limited but crucial insight for analyzing the current status of the pandemic in Alabama.
Officials have warned against using only the reported case totals when examining COVID-19 data, as reporting lags, at-home COVID-19 tests going unreported to the state, and asymptomatic cases mean that the total number is likely an undercount.
The number of patients in area hospitals receiving treatment for COVID-19-related illnesses is 307, which is a decrease of nearly 100 patients from a week ago when 406 patients were in hospitals. It is also a major decline from the first of the month, when ADPH reported 543 individuals receiving treatment.
According to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 38 percent of the population of Alabama are fully vaccinated with one booster dose, which is a small increase from the previous week’s 37.9 percent.
