Testing Available for All Georgians, With or Without Symptoms

Testing is now available to all Georgians who request it, whether they have symptoms or not.

Individuals wanting to be tested can contact any Georgia public health department to schedule an appointment at a SPOC location convenient to them.

The Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) reached its goal of testing 100,000 individuals in 10 days last week. More than 108,000 tests were processed since Commissioner Kathleen E. Toomey, M.D., M.P.H, set the DPH goal two weeks ago.

“This is an important benchmark for Georgia as we work to stop the spread of COVID-19 in the state,” said Toomey. “Increased testing is critical to understanding where there are hotspots of infection and how best to mitigate them.”

An appointment is still required at testing sites operated by the Northeast Health District.

In Athens-Clarke County, there are several ways to get tested for COVID-19 currently:

If you have a primary care provider, you can call your doctor, who can either perform the test or refer you for testing.

If you do not have a primary care provider:

Northeast Health District’s Nurse Line - 706-340-0996
Monday through Friday - 8:00 a.m.to 7:00 p.m.,
Saturdays - 8:00 a.m.to 5:00

Local urgent care center or federally qualified health center

Athens Free Clinic Mobile Unit - 706-308-4092
Monday through Friday - 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
For residents without transportation or who have barriers to care

188 Positive Cases Confirmed in Athens-Clarke County, 13 Deaths

The state Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) case tracker (https://dph.georgia.gov/covid-19-daily-status-report) confirms 188 positive cases of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Athens-Clarke County with 13 deaths as of 7:05 p.m. on May 11.

Beginning May 11, the Daily Status Report will be updated three times a day at 9:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. This change will enable more consistent reporting while still providing timely and actionable data.

The case tracker has recently been updated to a new format and provides additional county-level information, including the number of cases per 100,000 people (144.86 for Athens-Clarke County).

If you view the data, however, please be sure to check the area showing the definitions of the information presented. Some have different meanings than what you may expect.

The 13 deaths range in age from 60-98. Older adults and people who have severe underlying medical conditions like heart or lung disease or diabetes are at higher risk for developing more serious complications from COVID-19 and should always consult their healthcare provider if they are sick.

Stopping by instead of calling? Not right now.

Information Sources

The response to COVID-19 involves both rapid and extensive changes and also deliberate measures that take some time to consider.

Once official information is released from the Georgia Department of Public Health, the Northeast Georgia Health District, the State of Georgia government, or other local partners, we will report it on www.accgov.com/coronavirus and social media.

Additionally, this COVID-19 update newsletter will go out most days with new information primarily about the ACCGov response and plans. It may also include some local area information of note as space allows.