CULLMAN, Ala. – For several days, the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) on its COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard noted 1 death had been reported in Cullman County. That number changed to 0 Friday with no explanation.
Turns out, the person reported to have died was not a resident of Cullman County.
“Upon review of deaths there are some instances where persons are determined to be residents of another county. Deaths are reported by county of residence,” said Arrol Sheehan, director, Public Information Division at the ADPH, in an email to The Tribune.
Compounding the confusion was the news the ADPH reported Saturday: that an outside entity marked test results positive when they were negative, leading to a downward shift in numbers across the board.
The ADPH posted Saturday: “The error was rapidly discovered by the Infectious Disease and Outbreaks Division and ADPH Data Team. The ADPH Data Team has been working since (Friday) to correct this information and advises it could take a few days to completely resolve the information from the outside entity. The entity is cooperating with ADPH in this effort and has reached out to providers who ordered tests through their facility. ADPH closely monitors data transmitted to us, as the accuracy of information is vital to the COVID-19 outbreak response.”
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