Georgia reports nearly 3,400 new COVID-19 cases, 96 deaths in latest update

The Georgia Department of Public Health reported 235,168 cumulative COVID-19 cases Saturday, up by nearly 3,400 new cases in 24 hours.

Here are some key takeaways from the latest data:

Cases: 235,168 (+3,372 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: 4,669 (+96 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 reported back-to-back days with more than 100 coronavirus-related deaths earlier this week.

Tests: Georgia reported 251,604 total antibody tests and 1,988,066 total viral tests (+18,013 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: 2,586. That’s a decrease of 105 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.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports Georgia had 3,607 current hospital patients in an inpatient bed with confirmed or suspected coronavirus infections as of Aug. 15. Representatives of 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: 22,028, an increase of 210 in 24 hours.

Hospital capacity: As of Saturday, 84% 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 I, which includes Muscogee and other Columbus area counties, has eight critical care beds left, and Region H, which includes some Middle Georgia counties such as Baldwin, Laurens and Twiggs, has six critical care beds left. Not every patient in a critical care bed has COVID-19.

Cases per 100,000: Chattahoochee (7,535.58), Echols (5,694.13), Stewart (4,242.13), Atkinson (4,201.68) and Appling (4,191.58) counties have the highest coronavirus rates per 100,000 people in the state.

For a complete county-by-county list, visit the Georgia Department of Public Health’s website. The health department is not reporting how many Georgians have recovered.

Regional update

▪ Muscogee County reported 5,029 COVID-19 cases, an increase of 37 cases in 24 hours. The county reported 109 coronavirus-related deaths, an increase of two in 24 hours.

▪ In Middle Georgia, Bibb County reported 3,997 cases, up 46 cases in 24 hours. The county reported 83 coronavirus-related deaths, an increase of four in 24 hours.

▪ Fulton County reports the highest number of cumulative cases in the state at 21,867.

This story was originally published August 15, 2020 at 4:45 PM.