Clarke County's COVID cases up 21.8%; Georgia cases surge 13.8%

Mike Stucka USA TODAY NETWORK
·3 min read

New coronavirus cases leaped in Georgia in the week ending Sunday, rising 13.8% as 20,971 cases were reported. The previous week had 18,425 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19.

Georgia ranked 27th among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows.

In the latest week coronavirus cases in the United States increased 11.8% from the week before, with 800,077 cases reported. With 3.19% of the country's population, Georgia had 2.62% of the country's cases in the last week. Across the country, 38 states had more cases in the latest week than they did in the week before.

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Clarke County reported 235 cases and zero deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 193 cases and zero deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 30,987 cases and 237 deaths.

Oconee County reported 55 cases and zero deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 61 cases and one death. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 9,149 cases and 106 deaths.

Madison County reported 40 cases and one death in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 33 cases and one death. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 7,105 cases and 113 deaths.

Within Georgia, the worst weekly outbreaks on a per-person basis were in Stewart County with 408 cases per 100,000 per week; Schley County with 342; and Union County with 335. The Centers for Disease Control says high levels of community transmission begin at 100 cases per 100,000 per week.

Adding the most new cases overall were Fulton County, with 2,333 cases; Cobb County, with 1,776 cases; and Gwinnett County, with 1,627. Weekly case counts rose in 117 counties from the previous week. The worst increases from the prior week's pace were in Cobb, Richmond and Clayton counties.

>> See how your community has fared with recent coronavirus cases

Across Georgia, cases fell in 38 counties, with the best declines in Effingham County, with 88 cases from 160 a week earlier; in DeKalb County, with 1,456 cases from 1,503; and in Liberty County, with 66 cases from 111.

In Georgia, 132 people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday. In the week before that, 87 people were reported dead.

A total of 2,647,568 people in Georgia have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began, and 38,579 people have died from the disease, Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the United States 87,843,561 people have tested positive and 1,017,848 people have died.

>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States

Georgia's COVID-19 hospital admissions rising

USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, July 3. Likely COVID patients admitted in the state:

  • Last week: 2,145

  • The week before that: 1,772

  • Four weeks ago: 1,499

Likely COVID patients admitted in the nation:

  • Last week: 65,244

  • The week before that: 61,335

  • Four weeks ago: 56,288

Hospitals in 33 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 28 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds. Hospitals in 40 states admitted more COVID-19 patients in the latest week than a week prior, the USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Health and Human Services data shows.

The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control. If you have questions about the data or the story, contact Mike Stucka at mstucka@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Clarke County reported 235 additional COVID-19 cases this week