Columbus sees drop in new COVID-19 cases, test positivity. Here’s the latest data
Muscogee County reported declines in new COVID-19 cases and its percentage of positive tests last week. However, the county’s rate of cases per person remains high, according to a report published by the Georgia Department of Public Health Friday.
According to the County Indicator Report, Muscogee County reported 104 new COVID-19 cases from Sept. 26 through Oct. 2, down from 133 the week before. Columbus’ 14-day case rate as of Oct. 2 was 122 per 100,000 people. The threshold for a high 14-day case rate is 100.
The county’s test positivity rate fell from 6.3% on Sept. 19-25 to 3.6% on Sept. 26 through Oct. 3. Muscogee County’s two-week test positivity rate as of Oct. 2 was 4.8%. Muscogee County reported 11 new cases and no new deaths Monday.
Dooly and Crisp were the only West Central Health District counties that reported indicators of high coronavirus transmission last week.
The counties both reported more than 100 cases per 100,000 people and test positivity rates were above 10%. Dooly reported no new cases Monday, and Crisp reported three. Both counties are on the far edges of the district and southeast of Columbus.
Chattahoochee County was identified in the report as an emerging county of interest, citing increases in new cases and emergency department visits due to an influenza-like illness. Chattahoochee reported 49 cases from Sept. 26 through Oct. 2, an increase from 19 the week before. Daily increases, however, remain below previously set records.
Cases from residents and soldiers in training at Fort Benning, one of the nation’s largest Army posts, are counted among the county’s case totals. No new cases were reported in Chattahoochee Monday.
Total cases and deaths in the Columbus area since start of pandemic
As of Monday:
- Muscogee: 6,111, 171
Troup: 2,855, 101
- Chattahoochee: 1,683, 1
- Sumter: 941, 63
- Harris: 805, 22
- Crisp: 588, 18
Meriwether: 560, 14
Stewart: 523, 15
- Dooly: 346, 14
- Randolph: 331, 29
Macon: 236, 10
Taylor: 216, 11
Marion: 193, 9
Talbot: 166, 6
- Clay: 121, 3
- Schley: 106, 2
- Webster: 43, 2
- Quitman: 34, 1
Georgia update
Cases: 323,714 (+806 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: 7,192 (+30 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 306,927 total antibody tests and 3,032,757 total viral tests (+14,139 viral tests in 24 hours). These totals don’t account for tests that are not reported through the state’s electronic lab reporting system.
Over the last two weeks, Georgia reported an average of 180 daily coronavirus tests per 100,000 residents. That’s 63% of the state’s testing target, according to reporting by the New York Times and estimates made by the Harvard Global Health Institute.
Current COVID-19 hospitalizations: 1,280.