Jefferson County Reports More Than 600 New Coronavirus Cases

MONTGOMERY, AL — For the third time in less than a week, Jefferson County reported more than 600 new cases of COVID-19 in a day, as the Alabama Department of Public Health reported more than 4,000 new cases statewide Tuesday.

The 616 new cases in Jefferson County are not even the most in a day this month in the state's largest county. Jefferson County reported 692 new cases Dec. 5 and 686 Dec. 2.

The 4,436 new cases statewide also include about 1,500 cases backlogged from some areas of the state that were late in reporting, according to the ADPH.

In the last week, Jefferson County has seen staggering numbers of new cases, and the spike is not just due to an increase in testing. The county currently has a 35 percent positive test rate.

New cases reported in Jefferson County in the last week:

• Dec. 2: 686 new cases
• Dec. 3: 502 new cases
• Dec. 4: 594 new cases
• Dec. 5: 692 new cases
• Dec. 6: 473 new cases
• Dec. 7: 397 new cases
• Dec. 8: 616 new cases

Jefferson County has confirmed 20 deaths from COVID-19 just one week into the month of December. By contrast, the county reported 29 deaths from the virus in the entire month of October.

Gov. Kay Ivey's mandatory mask order is set to expire statewide Friday, but health officials have urged the governor to extend it again. Ivey has said in recent weeks that she does not intend to shut down Alabama businesses and she has encouraged school systems to continue on-campus and in-person learning for kids.

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