Weekend summary – December 12, 2021

Presented by the

Alabama Department of Public Health

Good afternoon!

Here is your Weekend Digest for Sunday December 12th.

• Rescuers in an increasingly gloomy search on Sunday searched the ruins of tornado-torn homes and businesses, including a candle factory that was teeming with night workers when it was razed to the ground, as the Governor of Kentucky has warned the state’s death toll could exceed 100.
• An Amazon nursing home and distribution center was also destroyed in other states during the unusual tornado swarm in mid-December.
• The tornado that spawned destruction in Kentucky affected more than 200 miles across the state.
• If the first reports are confirmed, the tornado “will likely become one of the longest violent tornadoes in US history,” said Victor Gensini, extreme weather researcher at Northern Illinois University.
• The storm was all the more remarkable since it occurred in December, when the normally colder weather limits tornadoes.
• Read more and see more photos HERE.

• A group of Alabama lawmakers proposed legislation similar to a Texas law that would ban most abortions and allow anyone to sue the violators and collect damages.
• The Alabama Heartbeat Act bill was introduced ahead of the 2022 legislative session. It would ban medical providers from performing abortions once heart activity is detected, typically around six weeks and before some women even know it. that they are even pregnant.
• The measure would allow individuals to bring civil suits against anyone who “aids or encourages” an abortion and to collect at least $ 10,000 in damages for each abortion performed.
• Republican Representative Jamie Kiel of Russellville, the main sponsor of the legislation, said the bill reflects Texas law, noting that it has yet to be struck down.
• Providers in Texas say abortions have become virtually inaccessible since the law was signed.
• Read more from Kim Chandler and see the bill for yourself HERE.

A message from

Alabama Department of Public Health

• COVID will not have the last word. We’re going.

• Protect yourself and those around you. Please get vaccinated today!

• And if you have symptoms of the COVID-19 virus, be sure to get tested.

• As the omicron variant sweeps across South Africa, Dr Unben Pillay sees dozens of sick patients a day. Yet he did not have to send anyone to the hospital.
• This is one of the reasons he, along with other doctors and medical experts, suspect the omicron version is really causing milder-than-delta COVID-19, even though it appears to be spreading faster.
• “They are able to manage the disease at home,” Pillay said of his patients. “Most recovered within the 10-14 day isolation period.” Pillay said.
• And that includes older patients and those with health conditions that can make them more vulnerable to coronavirus infection, he said.
• In the two weeks since omicron was first reported in southern Africa, other doctors have shared similar stories. All warn that it will take several more weeks to collect enough data to be sure, their observations and early evidence offer some clues.
• Read more HERE.

• Inflation is starting to sound like that unexpected – and unwanted – guest who just doesn’t want to go.
• For months, many economists had been sending out a reassuring message that a surge in consumer prices, something the United States had lacked for a generation, would not last long. It would prove to be “transient,” in the soothing words of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and White House officials, as the economy shifts from chaos linked to the virus to something closer to normal.
• Yet, as any American who’s bought a carton of milk, a gallon of gasoline, or a used car might tell you, inflation has set in. And economists are now expressing a more disheartening message: The price hike will likely last until next year, if not beyond.
• The government reinforced that message on Friday with its report that the consumer price index climbed 6.8% last month from a year earlier – the biggest 12-month jump since 1982.
• And the sticker shock hits where families tend to feel it the most. At the breakfast table, for example: bacon prices are up 21% from last year, egg prices by 8%. Gasoline jumped 58%. Furnishing your living room, dining room or kitchen will cost you 14% more than a year ago. Used vehicles? Up 31%.
• The price suppression intensifies the pressure on the Fed to move away from years of easy money policies more quickly. And it poses a threat to President Joe Biden, the Democrats in Congress, and their ambitious spending plans.
• Read more HERE.

• Bryce Young not only hit the standard set by star quarterbacks who came before him in Alabama, he surpassed it and gave the Crimson Tide a rare back-to-back Heisman.
• Young became Tide’s first quarterback to win the Heisman Trophy on Saturday night, making Alabama the fifth school with consecutive winners of the most prestigious college football player of the year award.
• “It’s amazing,” said Young, dressed in black with a sparkling diamond chain around his neck, as he began his acceptance speech.
• He thanked his father, Craig, for being his “best friend”, his mother, Julie, for “always supporting me” and his offensive line for “protecting me”.
• Read more HERE.

A message from

Stacy Financial Group

• Investment opportunities abound in today’s market, but finding the right financial partner can be a challenge.

• Our job is to listen to the needs and goals of our clients and to provide solutions that complement both risk tolerance and expectations.

• Learn more about Chad Stacy and the Stacy Financial Group HERE.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Crews search for missing after devastating tornadoes

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Texas-like abortion bill tabled in Alabama

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – South African doctors see signs omicron is sweeter than delta

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – EXPLICATOR: Why U.S. Inflation Is So High & When It Can Ease

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Back to back: Young gives Alabama back-to-back wins at Heisman

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Highly detailed new broadband map shows where unserved areas

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – BOE State: Decisions on masking requirements should be made locally

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – The Honorary Academy rewards accomplished Alabamians

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Senate passes bill eases way to increase debt ceiling

AL.COM – Mike Hubbard on hopes of early release from Alabama jail: “This is just a political coup”

AL.COM – Nakita Blocton, judge accused of mental instability and forcing staff to take diet pills, dismissed from her post

AL.COM – Alabama Schools Report Increase in ‘Very Serious’ Discipline Problems, Gun Threats

AL.COM – FedEx driver shocked by death of family accused of throwing hundreds of packages in ravine

AL.COM – New Wind Creek Casino nearing final approval for the Chicago area

DAILY DECATUR – BOE State: Decisions on masking requirements should be made locally

DAILY DECATUR – Decatur schools respond to staff shortage with a career fair

DAILY DECATUR – Career Academies students assembling, designing green energy cars

ONCE DAILY – The debut of the UNA becomes optional for the mask for the first time in 2 years.

ONCE DAILY – Hospital officials are still wary of the increase in COVID cases during the holidays.

ONCE DAILY – A detailed broadband map shows unserved areas

HOURS OF GADSDEN – Lawsuit alleges Gadsden Airport Authority violated open meeting law

HOURS OF GADSDEN – Gadsden Police Department uses social media as a positive tool

DOTHAN EAGLE – Childcare creates challenges on all sides

YELLOWHAMMER NEWS – HData announces business intelligence partnership with Alabama Power, move to Birmingham

YELLOWHAMMER NEWS – Britt and Brooks campaign against NDAA vote

YELLOWHAMMER NEWS – Fmr US Attorney Jay Town: Allowing Retired Law Enforcement To Work In Alabama Jails To Overcome Staff Shortage

WASHINGTON POST – Deadly Tornadoes Leave Path of Destruction Across Six States: “This is unlike anything I’ve ever seen”

WASHINGTON POST – Hundreds laid off, e-learning set to return amid vaccine resistance in nation’s second largest school district

WASHINGTON POST – More Universities Rethink Student Loans As Debt Cancellation Debate Rages On

NEW YORK TIMES – Contributor Abigail Susik: Could the big resignation help workers? Take a look at the story

NEW YORK TIMES – Newsom calls for gun legislation modeled on Texas abortion law

NEW YORK TIMES – Doctors and hospitals late offer to change ban on surprise billing