Georgia reports nearly 1,000 new COVID-19 cases — the highest number since early May
The Georgia Department of Public Health reported nearly 50,000 COVID-19 cases in its 3 p.m. update Thursday. Here are some key takeaways:
- Cases: 49,847 (+953 new cases in 24 hours). That’s the highest number of newly reported coronavirus cases since May 1 when state health officials confirmed 1,236 infections, according to raw data analyzed by McClatchy. Before the Georgia Department of Public Health updated its website this week, McClatchy previously used data from 7 p.m. reports to track daily changes.
- Deaths: 2,147 (+24 deaths in 24 hours)
- Current hospitalizations: 807 (-8 from Wednesday)
- Tests: 590,957. This number includes 94,626 antibody tests and 496,331 viral tests. However, these totals do not account for tests that are not reported through the state’s electronic lab reporting system.
Muscogee County reported 697 cases Thursday (+24 in 24 hours). Bibb County reported 494 (+13) cases Thursday. Fulton County (4,724) reports the highest number of cases in the state.
- Cases per person: Echols (3275.38), Randolph (2679.89), Terrell (2562.89), Early (2434.46) and Hancock (2392.29) counties have the highest number of coronavirus cases per person in the state.
- The health department is not reporting how many Georgians have recovered.
Georgia’s new COVID-19 cases were increasing before statewide protests
Public Health Commissioner Dr. Kathleen Toomey told reporters this week there’s a risk COVID-19 cases could rise in the wake of statewide protests against police brutality and racism.
But newly reported coronavirus cases in the state were rising before protests began. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported new coronavirus cases for the week ending May 24 rose 26%, compared to numbers the week before. Kemp attributed that increase to a private lab entering old test results.
For a full county-by-county breakdown, visit the state health department’s website.
This story was originally published June 4, 2020 at 3:44 PM.