COVID infections are declining in North Georgia after an increase in April. Newly-released data from the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) shows community spread was low across the region for the two-week period ending on May 10.
The decline is welcome news, particularly for Habersham County, which showed a significant spike in COVID cases at the end of last month. However, Now Habersham has learned that those numbers may not be as alarming as they appeared.
‘Baffled’
Data on the Georgia DPH COVID-19 Status Report shows 179 Habersham County residents had the infectious viral disease during the two weeks leading up to April 26. That figure equates to 391 cases per 100K residents, higher than any other county in the state.
During the reporting period before April 26, Habersham reported 12 COVID cases.
Such a significant spike could indicate an outbreak, but public health and local hospital officials say that wasn’t the case. Habersham Medical Center Infection Control Coordinator Joni Phillips says the hospital has only admitted one COVID patient in the past 6-8 weeks. She says the DPH figures from April “baffled” her.
‘Backlog’
After Now Habersham requested a review of the data, District 2 Public Health’s epidemiology team determined the sharp spike in positive cases came from a “data backlog.” The team did not specify how far back it extended.
Even so, Public Health District 2 spokesperson Natasha Young says there was “an increase in positive cases across many of our counties during April.”
“The data shows Habersham had the largest increase in positive cases, resulting in a designation of a medium community level.”
COVID-19 Community Levels – defined as low, medium, or high – help individuals and communities decide which prevention measures to take based on the latest information. This information can be beneficial for those who are considered at high risk for severe complications from COVID.
Following April’s reporting anomaly, Habersham’s numbers have returned to the low community level. New figures released Wednesday show the county reported eight COVID cases between April 27 and May 10.
“It’s important to note that fluctuations in the number of cases will occur,” says Young, “and the best protection to prevent spread during times of higher transmission is to get fully vaccinated and boosted.”
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