Georgia reports nearly 3,000 new COVID-19 cases Saturday, 48 new deaths

The Georgia Department of Public Health reported 281,548 cumulative COVID-19 cases Saturday, up by nearly 3,000 new cases in 24 hours.

Here are some key takeaways from the latest data:

Cases: 281,548 (+2,285 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: 5,977 (+48 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 283,277 total antibody tests and 2,460,729 total viral tests (+28,604 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: 9.6%. Georgia’s overall positivity: 10.5%. The World Health Organization’s recommended test positivity percentage is 5% to properly track outbreaks and locate milder cases of the disease.

Current COVID hospitalizations: 2,193. 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: 25,501, an increase of 99 in 24 hours.

Hospital capacity: As of Saturday, 80.8% of the state’s critical care beds are full. Not all critical care beds in the state are filled with COVID-19 patients.

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 5,598 COVID-19 cases, an increase of 18 cases in 24 hours. The county reported 149 coronavirus-related deaths, an increase of three in 24 hours.

Over the last two weeks, 8.1%of Muscogee County’s tests came back positive. Since the start of the pandemic, 11.2% of the county’s tests were positive.

▪ In Middle Georgia, Bibb County reported 5,500 cases, up 14 cases in 24 hours. The county reported 133 coronavirus-related deaths, an increase of two in 24 hours.

Over the last two weeks, 21.3% of Bibb County’s tests came back positive. Since the start of the pandemic, 16.9% of the county’s tests were positive, according to state’s data.

▪ Chattahoochee County reported 1,427 cases, up 51 cases in 24 hours. The county reported two coronavirus-related deaths. No new deaths were reported Saturday. Chattahoochee County leads the state with 13,275.65 cases per 100,000 people.

Over the last two weeks, 9% of the county’s tests came back positive. Since the start of the pandemic, 5.7% of Chattahoochee County’s tests were positive.

▪ Fulton County reports the highest number of cumulative cases in the state at 25,540.