COVID cases across the U.S., including Georgia and the Bulloch County area, have seen a gradual rise over the past two months, but the resulting infections have been less serious and officials do not expect that any new mandated precautions will be implemented.
The latest increase has been driven by the BA.5 COVID sub-strain, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Infections have risen in all but a few states, and so have hospitalizations and deaths. But the current wave’s toll is far less in comparison to previous spikes. During the peak of the Omicron surge in early 2022, close to 159,000 people were hospitalized on any given day. The number has not exceeded 45,000 since February.
In Bulloch County, there have been 196 newly confirmed COVID cases since July 6 and 228 likely cases, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health. Those are the most cases diagnosed in a three-week period since February. While Bulloch officials are constantly watching for any local spikes, they are not seeing a major problem at this time.
"The number of (local) cases are slightly increasing and we anticipate the number of positive COVID patients to increase when the school system starts back in session," said Stephen Pennington, CEO for East Georgia Regional Medical Center.
The hospital’s chief quality officer Beth Simmons added: “There has been a small rise in COVID cases at EGRMC, however, the severity of illness is mild.
There were six patients with COVID hospitalized at East Georgia as of Wednesday afternoon, according to Jaime Riggs, director of Marketing at the hospitals. That’s down from eight patients on Tuesday. No recent patients required a ventilator, Riggs said.
The first day of classes for Bulloch County public school students is Monday for the 2022-23 school year. More than 11,000 students are expected to attend in person. Extensive protocols that were in effect the past two school years to safeguard against COVID-19 are no longer in place.
“Going forward, we will treat COVID as we would influenza or any infectious illness,” said Hayley Greene, director of Public Relations for the school system. “As with any illness, there will be seasons when the number of cases are higher and lower.
“There is no school district policy regarding isolations and quarantines. Persons who have symptoms of COVID or a confirmed positive test, are encouraged to follow guidance from the Georgia Department of Public Health.
The Department of Health advises people diagnosed with COVID to quarantine and isolate as much as possible until they test negative.
COVID fatigue
After more than two years and more than a million U.S. deaths, most Americans are meeting the latest COVID wave with a collective shrug, shunning masks, joining crowds indoors and moving on from the endless barrage of virus warnings of months past.
In studies, the vaccines most widely used in the U.S. have been found to protect against severe illness and hospitalization. Nonetheless, fully vaccinated and boosted people can still come down with COVID.
While experts do not expect death rates to rival levels seen in previous virus surges, the virus is still killing an average of 430 people a day in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Hundreds of daily deaths for a summertime respiratory illness would normally be jaw-dropping, said Andrew Noymer, a public health professor at the University of California, Irvine. The long-running pandemic has changed the perception of many Americans of what is acceptable.
Local, state and national officials urge people to continue to take simple, proven precautions against COVID. Vaccinations, including booster shots for those eligible, lower the risk of hospitalization and death — even against the latest variants. But less than half of all eligible U.S. adults have gotten a single booster shot, and only about 1 in 4 Americans age 50 and older who are eligible for a second booster have received one.
In Bulloch County only 39% of residents are fully vaccinated, according to the Georgia Department of Public health.