State Sen. Stutts optimistic many in legislature will be protected against COVID threat with vaccine, antibodies by start of February regular session

The COVID-19 outlook for 2021 has cast some doubt on the ability of the Alabama Legislature to meet in 2021, given the threat the virus could pose to some of the body’s vulnerable members.

However, State Sen. Larry Stutts (R-Tuscumbia) said he anticipates many in the legislature having been inoculated for the coronavirus or having had it and recovered with the antibodies by the beginning of the regular session in early February.

Stutts, a practicing obstetrician in his district that includes the southern half of the Shoals region, explained why he was optimistic for legislative business to occur in 2021 during an appearance on Mobile radio’s FM Talk 106.5.

“I think so,” Stutts replied when asked about the possibility of vaccines being ready by the time the legislative session is scheduled to begin on February 2. “I’m, again, anticipating taking my first dose next week and then having the booster four weeks after that. The Moderna vaccine, the one that’s coming out second, is the one I’m most likely to get, and the second dose of it is four weeks later. Again, you have a significant immune response after the first dose. And so, if I get it on the week before Christmas, mid-to-late January, I’ll be getting the second dose. I am anticipating I will be immune and not wearing a mask by the time we go into session.”

“You know, there are a lot of people in the legislature — the first group is health care workers,” he continued. “But the second group is people who are older or have any comorbidities. There’s a significant number of the vaccines that are going to be shipped to Alabama. The first dose of the Moderna vaccine — the week before Christmas, the state is supposed to get 84,000 doses of it. By that time, we will have already had almost about 100,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine that have been distributed in the state. So, there will be quite a few people that have already gotten the vaccine by the time we’re back in Montgomery in February.”

The Colbert County lawmaker stopped short of saying it would be “business as usual,” noting his remarks generally involved lawmakers having been vaccinated or having had the virus.

“I don’t know if it will be business as usual, but again, there are several members I know in the Senate that have already had COVID infections,” Stutts added. “So, they should already be protected. And there will be several others of us that have qualified for a vaccine by that time. So, I could really foresee at least maybe half of the members of the Senate that have already had it or had a vaccine by that time.”

He said in March that he expected the vaccine to have widespread public availability.

“I think so,” he replied. “And I think certainly by early March, we should have had enough vaccine that anybody who wanted it just about could have gotten it by that point.”

@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly, and host of Mobile’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. on FM Talk 106.5.