by Robin Kemp
Clayton County saw 921 residents test positive for COVID-19 in the past week, according to the Clayton County Health District.
The latest figures from the Georgia Department of Public Health show COVID is back with a vengeance in Clayton County. As of August 22, 28,371 Clayton County residents have had COVID-19 and 523 of them have died.
The average positive PCR test rate for the past 7 days is 18%.
In addition:
- 2.8% of Georgia cases are in Clayton County.
- 5.6% of Clayton County residents with COVID-19 have been hospitalized.
- 1.8% of Clayton County residents have died of COVID-19.
- 9,216 people out of every 100,000 in Clayton County who took PCR tests for COVID-19 came back positive.
- 10,366 cases (PCR and antigen tests) have tested positive for COVID-19
Jonesboro, Riverdale, Morrow, Ellenwood, and Rex saw the largest number of cases last week:
Vaccination rate for Clayton County
Clayton County’s vaccination rate is improving, with 41% of residents (115,215 people) getting at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Only 34% (96,830 people) have been fully vaccinated as of August 22.
The Food and Drug Administration today approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for ages 16 and up, with emergency authorization for people ages 12 through 15 and for third-dose booster shots for certain immunocompromised people. The vaccine will now be marketed as Comirnaty (koe-MIR-na-tee).
“The FDA’s approval of this vaccine is a milestone as we continue to battle the COVID-19 pandemic,” said said Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock, M.D. “While this and other vaccines have met the FDA’s rigorous, scientific standards for emergency use authorization, as the first FDA-approved COVID-19 vaccine, the public can be very confident that this vaccine meets the high standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality the FDA requires of an approved product.”
Woodcock added, “While millions of people have already safely received COVID-19 vaccines, we recognize that for some, the FDA approval of a vaccine may now instill additional confidence to get vaccinated. Today’s milestone puts us one step closer to altering the course of this pandemic in the U.S.”
The Clayton County Health District and Clayton County Public Schools are teaming up this weekend for a second mass vaccination event. This one will take place Saturday, August 28 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at North Clayton Middle School, 5517 W. Fayetteville Rd., College Park. You can help CCPS and CCHD plan ahead by registering in advance at https://gta-vras.powerappsportqals.us/en-US/. Last weekend at Mundy’s Mill High School, 137 people got free COVID-19 vaccinations, CCPS said.
The FDA approval comes as Clayton County and other parts of Georgia are seeing a steep increase in pediatric COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations. At the same time, Georgia hospitals are dealing with a severe nursing shortage and area hospitals are slammed, often unable to take new patients at the emergency room.
Virus prepping: Why wear a mask?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says everyone from age 2 up should wear a mask in enclosed public spaces to slow the spread of the virus. By denying the virus access to your lungs, you help “starve” it by not giving it a place to make a home, reproduce, and eventually mutate into a version that is even deadlier. The more people who mask, the fewer places the virus has to live.
Virus prepping: Why get vaccinated?
Vaccination works the same way. It makes the body less like a virus-welcoming Air BnB and more like a forbidding fortress. Even if, in rare cases, vaccinated people become infected–say with the Delta variant of COVID-19, which is about 7 times more infectious–their bodies are better prepared to fight back and survive.
By comparison, Augusta Medical College notes, nearly 100% of people who die of COVID-19 are people who did not get vaccinated. That means only 0.8% of vaccinated people die.
The CDC also has helpful tips on how to make your mask more effective.
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