Alabama is showing new signs that COVID-19 is still with us. A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says test areas in Jefferson County are either high or very high. Levels are low nationally but certain states in the U.S. are part of a recent surge for the virus that causes the disease and Alabama is a part of those states. APR took a look at the testing process and why healthcare providers say why we should take it seriously. When Alabama health officials go searching for signs of COVID-19, one place they look is wastewater. Investigators with the state’s Department of Public Health visit water treatment plants to test for traces of the coronavirus.
“I mean, obviously regular testing, you’re swabbing each patient, so that’s more time consuming, whereas, if you’re swabbing, you know, the water systems,” said Dr. Prerana Rodrigues. That’s Prerana Rodrigues and she is with the Health Foundation of the University of Alabama in Birmingham.
“Especially like the sewage areas and the pipes, that also gives us a rough estimate of at least the numbers you know, as a whole, generally. But it obviously doesn’t tell us. Well, if it’s concentrated within number one a certain area, right?” said Dr. Rodrigues.
She says testing wastewater can give health officials a general idea of how COVID is spreading in a certain community. “You’re just wanting to know the general numbers, you know, versus, okay, the levels of covid versus, say, hospitalization rates, or what have you, then maybe the, you know, testing the water works wouldn’t be a bad idea.” Dr. Rodrigues stated…