COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths in Georgia are rising but remain well below levels seen during the coronavirus pandemic. State Epidemiologist Dr. Cherie Drenzek says that about 17,000 Georgians were hospitalized with the virus during the past week, an increase of 16% over the previous week. COVID-19 deaths in Georgia also rose by 11% to about 700.
In both cases, the numbers are significantly lower than during the peak of the pandemic. In fact, there were twice as many deaths from COVID-19 last January and 10 times more deaths in January 2022, when the omicron variant was at its peak.
Drenzek said the EG.5 variant of the virus is the dominant strain now circulating in Georgia, followed closely by several other strains that derive from the omicron variant. However, the BA.2.86 variant – which has been the subject of a lot of news coverage – has yet to appear in Georgia.
