Georgia’s known coronavirus death toll surpasses 4,000, hospitalizations decrease again
The Georgia Department of Public Health reported 204,895 cumulative COVID-19 cases Thursday, up by 3,250 new cases in 24 hours.
Here are some key takeaways from the latest data:
Cases: 204,895 (+3,250 reported today). The number of new cases reported in a day may not match the difference in total cases over a 24-hour period. This occurs because previously reported cases may be removed as duplicate reports are corrected. An older confirmed case may also be reclassified as additional information is collected during an investigation.
Deaths: 4,026 (+42 deaths in 24 hours). It’s important to note that these numbers indicate when deaths are reported to the Georgia Department of Public Health. It does not reflect when these deaths occurred.
Georgia surpassed 3,000 confirmed coronavirus-related deaths on July 12, less than a month ago.
Tests: Georgia reported 234,055 total antibody tests and 1,724,762 total viral tests (+29,538 new viral tests in 24 hours). These totals don’t account for tests that are not reported through the state’s electronic lab reporting system.
Current COVID hospitalizations: 3,006. That’s a decrease of 71 patients in 24 hours. The count includes any patient in a Georgia hospital who has tested positive for COVID-19 at the time of the report. This count does not include patients who are being investigated for possible infection by health officials.
Current COVID hospitalizations have decreased each day since August 3 when 3,111 patients were reported.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports Georgia had 4,139 current hospital patients in an inpatient bed with confirmed or suspected coronavirus infections as of Aug. 6. Representatives for the Georgia Department of Public Health previously said that federal data includes some long-term acute care and rehabilitation facilities, while state data is only from acute care hospitals.
Total COVID hospitalizations: 20,002, an increase of 214 in 24 hours.
Hospital capacity: As of Thursday, 87% of the state’s critical care beds are full. Not all critical care beds in the state are filled with COVID-19 patients. Some regions have less than 10 critical care beds available. Region H, which includes some Middle Georgia counties such as Baldwin, Laurens and Twiggs, has 2 critical care bed left. Not every patient in a critical care bed has COVID-19.
Cases per 100,000: Chattahoochee (6,828.54), Echols (5,467.37), Stewart (4,144.23), Randolph (3,938.41) and Bacon (3,717.99) counties have the highest coronavirus rates per 100,000 people in the state.
The health department is not reporting how many Georgians have recovered.
For a complete county-by-county list, visit the Georgia Department of Public Health’s website.
Regional update
▪ Chattahoochee County reported 734 cases, up 38 cases in 24 hours. Since July 29, 216 COVID-19 cases have been reported in the county. The county reported 1 confirmed coronavirus-related death. No new deaths were reported.
▪ Muscogee County reported 4,514 COVID-19 cases, an increase of 59 cases in 24 hours. The county reported 90 coronavirus-related deaths, an increase of one in 24 hours.
The county reported six new deaths Wednesday. That was the largest single-day increase in coronavirus deaths by date of report since the start of the pandemic.
▪ In Middle Georgia, Bibb County reported 3,395 cases, up 42 cases in 24 hours. The county reported 66 confirmed coronavirus-related deaths, an increase of one in 24 hours.
▪ Fulton County reports the highest number of cases in the state at 19,230.
This story was originally published August 6, 2020 at 4:02 PM with the headline "Georgia’s known coronavirus death toll surpasses 4,000, hospitalizations decrease again."