Though not as much as in years past, COVID-19 cases are rising again in Athens after UGA classes started last week.
Athens had 113 confirmed cases over the past two weeks, according to weekly data released Wednesday by the Georgia Department of Public Health. For months, just a handful of cases per day were reported in Athens, but that number spiked to 30 on Monday. The real figure is likely much higher, as most people now use at-home tests, and the results of those are not reported to the state.
Fortunately, the current wave isn’t resulting in as many deaths or hospitalizations as previous waves. In the 10-county Northeast Health District, there were 475 confirmed cases and one death for the week of Aug. 16-22. According to the most recent CDC data, about 350 people in Georgia are hospitalized with COVID-19, compared to more than 5,000 at the height of the pandemic, so hospitals are not under stress.
A pattern has emerged since the start of the pandemic in March 2020: Cases spike in Athens in late August and early September, after UGA students come back to town. They spike again in December and January, after Thanksgiving and winter break, when people are also traveling and are often stuck indoors.
Public health experts are urging people who are at risk of severe COVID to consider wearing N95 masks again when they are in public. That includes people over 65 and people with pre-existing conditions like diabetes or respiratory disease, or who are immunosuppressed, as well as their caregivers.
A new booster vaccine is also on the way in about a month that will protect against newer variants. However, experts are advising that most people should hold off for a while so that its effectiveness will peak this winter. Those who are unvaccinated or have not received a booster, though, should get one immediately, because even the older bivalent vaccine will provide some protection against newer strains. Only 57% of Athens’ population is fully vaccinated (two shots), and 71% have not had a booster, according to the CDC.
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