New COVID-19 cases in Georgia jumped by more than 4,500 on Tuesday, the highest daily increase reported in months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most of the new cases came from rapid antigen tests. About 1,000 of those positives, though, were part of a \u201cdata dump\u2019\u2019 of cases from October, state officials said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How the rapid antigen tests are counted has generated questions and confusion in Georgia. The antigen test results are now posted separately on the Georgia Department of Public Health\u2019s daily COVID report, but those positives aren\u2019t included in data the state sends to external agencies as confirmed cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
An Emory team brought COVID tests to poultry workers this year. Credit: Emory University<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re really not painting an accurate picture of what\u2019s going on,\u2019\u2019 Amber Schmidtke, a microbiologist who tracks COVID in Georgia in the Daily Digest, said Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other Southeastern states report the rapid test results as part of their cumulative infection totals, she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She called the Tuesday infection increase in Georgia \u2018\u2018a little frightening.\u2019\u2019 The test positivity rate here has also increased, she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wednesday\u2019s COVID numbers reported by the state declined from the Tuesday total to 2,350, but with a high number of confirmed deaths \u2014 69.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The antigen testing numbers \u201cfluctuate widely one day to the next,\u2019\u2019 said Nancy Nydam, a Public Health spokeswoman. Those fluctuations will smooth out more as medical facilities get used to reporting these results, she added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rapid tests are not considered as accurate as PCR tests. But because they are faster and less expensive than PCR tests, antigen tests may be more practical to use for large numbers of people, experts say. They\u2019re frequently used at universities, long-term care facilities and medical offices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\u2019s an increased chance of a false negative result with an antigen test, meaning it\u2019s possible to be infected with the virus even though the test indicates you are not. But a positive result on an antigen test \u2014 indicating that you are infected \u2014 is considered accurate when instructions are carefully followed, the Mayo Clinic says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If a person has COVID symptoms and gets a negative antigen test, they may want to follow it with a PCR test, experts say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The overall rise in new infections in Georgia coincides with an alarming national increase in COVID cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The stunning numbers were somewhat overshadowed this week when Pfizer announced Monday that early clinical trial data suggested its coronavirus vaccine was more than 90 percent effective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Still, at least 1,448 new coronavirus deaths and 139,855 new cases were reported Tuesday in the United States. And COVID-19 hospitalizations\u00a0hit a record high of 61,964\u00a0the same day.\u00a0The number of Americans hospitalized due to COVID-19 has risen almost 50 percent in the last two weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Georgia is categorized as a state with \u201cuncontrollable spread\u2019\u2019 by covidexitstrategy.com<\/a>. The website reports that the state is meeting just 41 percent of its testing target.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And the recently released White House Coronavirus Task Force report said Georgia was in the \u201cred zone\u2019\u2019 for major community spread of the disease. It joined 42 other states in this category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The report said hard-hit counties in the state must take a proactive approach, testing all people in the 18-to-40 age group whether or not there are any other risk factors. \u201cGeorgia must expand the mitigation efforts statewide as test positivity and cases are increasing,\u2019\u2019 the task force said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It added that during the week of Oct 26 \u2013 Nov 1, 10 percent of nursing homes in Georgia had at least one new resident infected with the virus; 19 percent had at least one new staff COVID-19 case, and 4 percent had at least one new resident COVID-19 death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe have been experiencing a significant surge for the past five weeks, as reflected in rising case counts and positivity rates and are now also seeing increases in both hospitalizations and deaths,\u2019\u2019 said Dr. Harry Heiman, a public health expert at Georgia State University. \u201cTragically, this is in line with what is happening all over the country and in our state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLike many other places, there has been a failure of political and public health leaders to take meaningful action,\u2019\u2019 Heiman said. \u201cWe know a mask mandate works, we know that allowing large in-person gatherings, including political events, adds to transmission.\u2019\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n State public health officials should also focus on the disproportionate impact of COVID on communities of color, Heiman added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am hopeful that a new [presidential] administration will provide not only a coordinated national framework and plan, but also provide states with the resources they need to be successful.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n Outbreaks at schools in Richmond<\/a>, Peach<\/a> and DeKalb<\/a> counties have shut down classrooms this week.<\/p>\n\n\n\nStronger guidance on masks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n