Nearly all metro Atlanta counties now have ‘high’ level of COVID-19 transmission, CDC says State officials attribute the increase in COVID-19 cases to the new BA.5 variant.
ATLANTA – All highly populated counties in metro Atlanta are now under the “high” community level of transmission of COVID-19 cases as of Friday morning.
That’s according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which were released Thursday.
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State officials attribute the increase in COVID-19 cases to the new BA.5 variant.
“What we’re seeing now is that it’s actually about 60 percent, and if you look at it from just a few weeks ago, that’s a big jump,” Georgia State Epidemiologist Cherie Drenzek said. to Channel 2’s Richard Elliot earlier this week.
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The Georgia Department of Public Health updates its numbers currently only once a week on Wednesdays.
This week’s data showed that cases of COVID-19 have increased by 24%, from 15,394 to 19,097 cases this week compared to last week.
Even so, the hospitalization rate remains relatively low. According to the GDOH, there are just over 1,200 patients with COVID-19 in Georgia hospitals. This represents only 7.5% of hospitalized patients.
During the peak of the Delta variant in September 2021, more than 6,000 people were hospitalized with COVID-19.
Of those hospitalized last week with the virus, 440 were unvaccinated or partially vaccinated, 135 had received only one dose of the vaccine and 155 were fully vaccinated and boosted.
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Here are the CDC’s recommendations when your county is at the high level:
Channel 2’s Tom Regan was in DeKalb County where people were heading to the pharmacy to get their shots. At Briarcliff Pharmacy, they used to only do vaccinations on Fridays, but recently there has been so much demand that they do it every day of the week.
Kathy Armisted had wanted to get her second vaccine booster for a long time, but never got around to it. What finally got it in the door was the BA.5 variant.
“I know more people now than I knew at first who have had COVID,” Armisted said, “so it’s time to buckle down and make sure I’m safe.”
The pharmacy said a growing wave of customers are calling to make an appointment for a shot or simply showing up for their first show and getting fully vaccinated.
“There are a lot of people suffering from COVID,” said pharmacist Demetrius Gavalas. “And that’s why a lot of people are rushing back in, especially the elderly and more immunocompromised patients.
The pharmacy has also been taking vaccines to assisted living facilities and nursing homes, places that fear an outbreak of the virus, which could lead to restrictions.
“We actually did a few clinics earlier in the week, to get them going,” Gavalas said. “Especially with the rate of people coming in and out of the house.”
While many health officials are concerned about the rise in infections, others don’t think much of it.
“I didn’t even know,” Mike Lacey said.
“You just have to live with it,” Daquan Holliway said. “You can’t erase it now. It’s out there in the world.”
Regan spoke with some businesses about whether or not they are considering reimposing mask mandates. They say they are waiting to see what the local health department says.
According to the Georgia Department of Health, only 57% of residents are fully vaccinated. Only 43% have had a reinforcement.
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