Doctor: COVID-19 ‘Raging’ in Alabama as Many Refuse Shots

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) – A health leader says COVID-19 is “raging” through Alabama as thousands refuse vaccinations that nearly always prevent serious illness. UAB Hospital’s Dr. Sarah Nafziger says the surge is happening as a highly contagious strain race through communities where many have quit taking basic safety precautions. Nearly all of the more than 1,250 people hospitalized statewide with the illness aren’t inoculated. Nafziger says Alabama now has the nation’s highest positivity rate and there’s no sign the rapid increase in cases will end soon. Only 34% of Alabama’s population is fully vaccinated, which is the lowest in the nation.

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