A total of 5,496 new cases of coronavirus were reported across Georgia on Wednesday by the state’s Department of Public Health, which also noted 49 more virus-related fatalities. Two of those fatalities were reported in Floyd County.
According to the latest report by the DPH issued just before 3 pm, there have been 558,177 confirmed cases of COVID-19 statewide. The state’s death toll now stands at 9,808. In Floyd County, there were 6,676 confirmed cases and 108 fatalities. Gwinnett County had this state’s highest number of confirmed cases with 50,631, and Fulton County had the most deaths with 736.
The full COVID-19 Daily Status Report is posted on the Georgia Department of Public Health’s website at www.dph.georgia.gov. That site now features a vaccine dashboard that is updated daily (with the exception of weekends and holidays). As of 6 pm on Wednesday, 61,870 vaccines had been administered statewide.
Georgia’s Governor Brian Kemp and the DPH’s Commissioner Dr. Kathleen Toomey announced plans on Wednesday evening to include adults age 65 and older, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and first responders to the group of individuals now eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. Healthcare workers and the staff and residents of long-term care facilities were already a part of this group. The expanded administration of the vaccine is expected to begin within the next two weeks (as long as an adequate supply is available), according to a DPH media release.