MACON, Ga. — The North Central Health District is scaling back their COVID-19 testing due to low demand.
Week by week over the past month, Georgia continues to see fewer new COVID-19 cases.
Even though testing demand is down in Central Georgia, Coliseum Medical Centers has seen an increase in its COVID-19 patients in just the last two weeks.
Heath District Spokesman Michael Hokanson says during the virus' peak this summer, they were collecting close to 1,400 tests a week across their 13 counties.
Now, they're collecting about 500.
"Just like with all things COVID-19, there are peaks and troughs. After holidays, we saw an increase in demand and an increase in cases, so we're definitely taking those things into account," Hokanson said.
For now, there will be no more weekend testing.
Larger counties like Bibb and Houston will see testing only three days a week, while other counties have two days or less.
"We know that people are probably looking more for those rapid testing where they can get results back sooner than what we can provide, so that might be one of the reasons we're seeing lower numbers," he said.
He also says they are not seeing as many new cases per day as they were seeing a month ago.
"That’s another thing that kind of keyed us into, 'Hey, maybe we can start scaling back so we can offer some of our other services that have been missing during this pandemic response.'"
He says they can ramp up their testing if they end up needing to.
Over at Coliseum Medical Centers, their COVID-19 patients have jumped from 15 to 30 in just the last two weeks.
They currently have 12 patients in the ICU.
"I think everybody, including me, is sick and tired of COVID and I think a lot of people are letting up on their precautions," said Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Jennifer Hoffman.
She says the drop in testing demand may be because people with mild symptoms don't want to be tested and then have to miss work if they test positive.
"I wonder if that’s driving some of it is that people, you know, can’t afford to stay home, don’t want to have to quarantine their whole families," she said.
As for statewide numbers, she says part of the reason they might be going down is because of the way the state tracks tests.
"Georgia is not currently including the coronavirus antigen tests in our positive test count. They’re only including the PCR based test. While it’s true the PCR based test is the most accurate test, the coronavirus antigen test seems to be gaining popularity and a lot more people are getting that one because it’s more comfortable," Hoffman said. "It’s quick, it’s easy, and so, unlike most states, I think something like 30 other states are including the coronavirus antigen test in their positive count, we are not including that, which drives our numbers artificially down."
She says we are not out of the woods yet.
"I'm kind of mystified how the state numbers look so good, even the Bibb County numbers don't look that bad, and yet, here in the hospital, you know, we're going up, up, up," she said. "We’re still only a half of where we were in late July, early August, but if we keep going up, we’re gonna get back there pretty quickly."
Hokanson agrees.
"Even though we’re scaling back testing, this does not mean that COVID is gone," he said. "Anytime that we have people coming together, especially in the counties that are experiencing substantial spread, there is a risk of COVID-19 transmission."
Hokanson and Hoffman say it's still so important to wear a mask, wash your hands and practice social distancing.