MACON, Ga. — Georgia has seen a steady increase in new COVID-19 cases since September with this latest rise now moving past what many hoped would be the worst of it back in July.
Georgia's average daily cases increase even into the state's two-week preliminary window, meaning these numbers are expected to go even higher in the coming days as more test results come in.
Just inside that window, numbers already show Georgia averaging 4,475 new cases a day. That is more than 4x higher than the low point at the end of September, and more than the peak in July when the state averaged 4,439 new cases.
A week ago, Georgia recorded its second highest number of new cases in a day at 5,794. It's just 25 cases shy of the record right after the 4th of July, but falls within the preliminary window, so that number is likely to climb higher.
In Houston County, there is a sharp increase in cases leading up to and within the preliminary window, already showing an average of almost 63 new cases a day just before Christmas. That is compared to an average of 50 back in July.
The latest numbers are now more than 6x higher than just three months ago.
Bibb County's numbers are slightly higher than Houston's, averaging 67 new cases a day before Christmas, but Bibb saw a much higher average of 112 new cases back in July.
Many other Central Georgia counties report similar upward trends, including Laurens and Monroe counties.
The state did report more people getting tested for COVID-19 over the last few weeks, so these numbers and trends could change as those test results get factored in. The state also reports a higher percentage of those tests coming back positive.
Meanwhile, Georgia's healthcare workers continue to admit more and more patients. Statewide, an average of 200 people are hospitalized every day with COVID-19. On Christmas Eve, the state reported its highest daily hospitalization count in months with 400 new patients.
Right outside the two-week preliminary window, an average of 23 Georgians died each day from COVID-19. The daily average has not shown any clear trend recently, but numbers have stayed well below the peak in August when COVID-19 killed 75 people a day in the state.
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