Georgia Reports Almost 3,000 New COVID-19 Cases, Record High

ATLANTA, GA — Georgia’s health department reported Wednesday almost 3,000 new cases of COVID-19 — another one-day record in the coronavirus pandemic.

At 2:57 p.m. Wednesday, the Georgia Department of Public Health reported a total of 84,237 confirmed cases of COVID-19. That’s 2,946 more than was reported at the same time Tuesday.

Georgia also reported 2,827 deaths from COVID-19, 22 more that reported Tuesday. In addition, the state reported 11,275 hospitalizations and 2,357 admissions to intensive-care units.

No information is available from Georgia about how many patients have recovered.

Earlier Wednesday, Gov. Brian Kemp embarked on a statewide tour urging — but not mandating — that Georgians wear masks to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

“There’s a lot of people that believe a mask mandate would work,” Kemp said to WSB-TV. “I don’t think we’re going to have to get to that point.”

Even before Wednesday’s numbers were released, the health department for Cobb and Douglas counties had issued a public-health alert, spurred by an alarming increase in new cases.

In her statement Wednesday, health director Dr. Janet Memark cited a 10-percent positive rate for COVID-19 testing in the two counties, which created an “upward trajectory” in new cases that couldn’t be attributed solely to more testing.

As of Wednesday, more than 1 million Georgians have been tested for COVID-19, with about 16 percent the less reliable tests for antibodies. About 8.4 percent of all tests came back positive.

Counties in or near metro Atlanta continue to have the highest number of cases, with Gwinnett still in the lead.

• Gwinnett County: 8,362 confirmed cases
• Fulton County: 7,277 confirmed cases
• DeKalb County: 5,959 confirmed cases
• Cobb County: 5,081 confirmed cases
• Hall County: 3,252 confirmed cases

Counties in or near metro Atlanta also continue to have the highest number of deaths. The lone exception is Dougherty County, the site of Georgia's first major outbreak.

• Fulton County: 314 deaths
• Cobb County: 245 deaths
• DeKalb County: 173 deaths
• Gwinnett County: 173 deaths
• Dougherty County: 155 deaths

All Georgia statistics are available on the state's COVID-19 website.

Globally, more than 10.5 million people have been infected by COVID-19, and more than 512,000 people have died, Johns Hopkins University reported Wednesday. In the United States, more than 2.6 million people have been infected and more than 127,000 people have died from COVID-19. The U.S. has more confirmed cases and deaths than any other country.

Scattered, smothered, and (faces) covered! Dr. Toomey and I want all Georgians to mask up to fight the spread of COVID-19! pic.twitter.com/O5YQngUGXQ
— Governor Brian P. Kemp (@GovKemp) July 1, 2020

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