Total COVID-19 deaths in Georgia surpass 5,000. Here’s more from the daily update:

The Georgia Department of Public Health reported 252,222 cumulative COVID-19 cases Saturday, up by 2,615 new cases in 24 hours.

Here are some key takeaways from the latest data:

Cases: 252,222 (+2,615 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: 5,092 (+95 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.

Tests: Georgia reported 265,893 total antibody tests and 2,149,170 total viral tests (+29,068 viral tests in 24 hours). These totals don’t account for tests that are not reported through the state’s electronic lab reporting system.

Positivity rate for Georgia today: 9.2%. Georgia’s overall positivity: 10.6%. The World Health Organization’s recommended a test positivity percentage of 5% to properly track outbreaks and locate milder cases of the disease.

Current COVID hospitalizations: 2,361. That’s a decrease of 47 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.

Total COVID hospitalizations: 23,325, an increase of 200 in 24 hours.

Hospital capacity: As of Saturday, 85% 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 three critical care beds left.

For a complete county-by-county list and additional data, 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 5,265 COVID-19 cases, an increase of 34 cases in 24 hours. The county reported 120 coronavirus-related deaths, an increase of three in 24 hours.

Over the last two weeks, 9.6% of Muscogee County’s tests came back positive. Since the start of the pandemic, 11.5% of the county’s tests were positive.

▪ In Middle Georgia, Bibb County reported 4,496 cases, up 103 cases in 24 hours. The county reported 98 coronavirus-related deaths, an increase of three in 24 hours.

Over the last two weeks, 14.9% of Bibb County’s tests came back positive. Since the start of the pandemic, 14.5% of the county’s tests were positive.

▪ Chattahoochee County reported 930 cases, up 34 cases in 24 hours. The county reported two coronavirus-related deaths. No new deaths were reported. Chattahoochee County leads the state with 8,651.97 cases per 100,000 people.

Over the last two weeks, 7% of the county’s tests came back positive. Since the start of the pandemic, 5.5% of Chattahoochee County’s tests were positive.

▪ Fulton County reports the highest number of cumulative cases in the state at 23,622.