The Alabama Hospital Association said the total number of virus patients in state hospitals dipped to almost 2,000 on Monday. But, healthcare providers say that’s because more people are dying of COVID-19 in Alabama.
Many of the patients occupying ICU beds are unvaccinated and vacate those spaces when they die from the disease. The current dip in hospitalizations is considered the lowest it’s been since early August. The Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation in Washington State estimates that Alabama’s death rate from the coronavirus will continue to rise at least until the end of the year, with an additional 2,000 fatalities.
State health officials also note that Alabama had more deaths than births in 2020, for the first time ever in a century, almost 65,000 fatalities to almost 58,000 newborns. COVID-19 is blamed for the trend.
