One North Alabama physician believes the latest data, and the whole well-being of the state’s citizens, call for an immediate, full reopening of Alabama.
Dr. Andrew Hodges practices in internal medicine in Jackson County. Earlier this week, he wrote a letter to State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris outlining the reasons why he thinks the time is right to return everyone to work and to allow churches to conduct worship services.
Hodges complimented Harris on his work throughout the COVID-19 crisis.
“From one internist to another, I want to commend you for a job-well-done under these unprecedented circumstances,” he wrote. “I want to personally let you know I have been praying for you and the rest of our state leadership throughout this pandemic.”
He then went on to articulate his belief that the time has come for reopening.
“At the time of this virus being discovered, I understand the initial fear and panicked response,” wrote Hodges. “However, now that the data has come out, I believe it is time to get back to life. The people of Jackson County, my home, desperately need to get back to work. More so than this, we need to get back to church. Assembling to corporately worship God together is a cornerstone of our existence; people being gainfully employed is a cornerstone of our economy.”
Throughout the lockdown process, many have questioned the need to apply the same approach throughout the country.
Hodges registered his skepticism of a one-size-fits-all model, writing, “Looking at the data, I do not understand why there needs to be any further waiting. It has become apparent to me our COVID19 testing is in danger of misclassification bias in light of the liberal reporting practices increasingly coming to public attention. The R0 value for our state (even more so, many of our counties) is not that of New York, New Jersey, New Orleans, etc. Meanwhile, the collateral damage stands to be massive.”
Read the entirety of Hodges’ letter:
Alabama Quarantine by Yellowhammer News on Scribd
Tim Howe is an owner of Yellowhammer Multimedia
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