Jefferson County Health Officer Dr. Mark Wilson is strongly recommending members of the public refrain from gathering in groups of 10 or more people for the next two weeks, but is not going issue a health order making that a requirement.
Wilson specifically mentioned houses of worship as, in his view, a risky place for people to gather.
Wilson’s comments were made on a live-streamed press conference Friday afternoon and come in the shadow of Governor Kay Ivey declaring that, beginning Monday, May 11, a large number of businesses, churches and other institutions may begin to reopen.
“I am very very concerned about the fact that we do not have decreasing incidents of the disease in the community. COVID-19 is still with us, it is still quite steady,” said Wilson.
“I believe it was a decision that had to be made because we need to get back to business. The economy is really suffering, people need to get back to work,” Wilson said of Ivey’s order.
However, Wilson continued on to say he very strongly recommends that citizens in Jefferson County not congregate in groups of more than 10 for two more weeks, including worship services.
Under Wilson’s recommendation, the first Sunday citizens could be back in church would be May 31.
“I’m very concerned we could start to see an increase in disease,” Wilson said of the slate of reopening planned for Monday by Ivey’s newly amended order.
“Again, that is not an order, but it is a recommendation,” he reiterated.
Wilson urged the public to be careful as they head back to work and to the various shops and service venues that will be open starting Monday. He also advised the public to get tested if they were at all worried.
“There is currently plenty of testing capacity in Jefferson County,” said Wilson, who described reports that some testing centers were not busy lately.
“I want everybody to keep in mind that just because you’re allowed to do something it’s not necessarily the right thing or the smart thing to do,” he advised.
Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: [email protected] or on Twitter @HenryThornton95
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