COVID-19 Deaths Rise As Hospitalizations Fall In Tuscaloosa

TUSCALOOSA, AL — The numbers of new and current COVID-19 inpatients have trended down at DCH Regional Medical Center in Tuscaloosa in recent weeks, while the sharp uptick in deaths over the same period of time underscores the devastating human toll of the pandemic.

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While the number of coronavirus positive inpatients has seen a noticeable decline over the last two weeks — falling by 25 total to 113 on Monday — it's important to note that 43 individuals died at the Tuscaloosa hospital over this time after testing positive for COVID-19.

Since the first day of September, that number is at 82 — marking one of the deadliest single months of the pandemic and representing 12% of the total COVID-19 deaths reported to date at DCH. It is unclear how many of these deaths were Tuscaloosa County residents, as DCH has opted to only publish its cumulative number of deaths of COVID-19 positive patients.

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The local trends are also in line with those reported at the state level, with Alabama averaging more than 100 coronavirus deaths a week, according to statistics published last Thursday by the Associates Press. This put Alabama in the unenviable position of having the nation's highest COVID-19 death rate over that time.

COVID-19 Notebook

• DCH reports 83% of its current inpatient population has not been fully vaccinated, in addition to 90% of its 22 patients being treated in its ICU.
• Of the COVID-19 patients receiving critical care at DCH to start the week, 16 are being treated on ventilators.
• To date, the Alabama Department of Public Health reports that 93,538 Tuscaloosa County residents have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Of those citizens, 78,570 had completed their vaccine series as of last Thursday. New vaccination numbers are expected on Tuesday.
• As Patch reported on Monday, 66% of the Tuscaloosa County Jail's 695 inmates have been vaccinated.
• At present, 0.45% of the 11,000 students within Tuscaloosa City Schools are out due to testing positive or having to quarantine after exposure, compared to 0.07% of the Tuscaloosa County School System's 19,000 students.

DCH is also reminding the public that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has approved certain groups to receive a Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 booster shot. Click here to check eligibility or to register for a COVID-19 booster.

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