March 31, 2021 Update

Vaccine Information on accgov.com/coronavirus

Visit the Vaccine Information area of accgov.com/coronavirus for an updated list of vaccine providers in Athens-Clarke County according to the Georgia Department of Public Health's Find a COVID-1 Vaccination Site and its vaccine main page.

The list features links to vaccine information as well as phone numbers and email addresses where available in one convenient location for Athens-Clarke County locations. It does not include locations in neighboring counties. The list will be updated as additional sites providing public vaccinations are known.

Governor’s Statewide Executive Order Extended from March 31 - April 7, 2021 & New Order Signed for April 8-30

On March 31, 2021 Governor Brian P. Kemp signed Executive Order 03.31.21.02, extending the current executive order, which ran March 16-31, through April 7.

The order also provides some ability for employees to use emergency office closure leave for vaccinations and vaccination side effects.

The order continues to:

Combine the restaurant and bar requirements to hold both types of establishments to the same standards; and
Streamline suggestions and requirements for Critical Infrastructure and Non-Critical Infrastructure organizations to remove unnecessary requirements based on existing standard operating procedures for organizations and the ineffectiveness of certain measures; and
Include 2021 high school graduates, home study graduates, and GED recipients in previously ordered HOPE and Zell Miller Scholarship testing requirement modifications.

Additionally, Governor Kemp signed an additional order for April 8-30, which removes some restrictions.

Georgia Department of Public Health Daily Status Report

March 31 Case Update for Athens-Clarke County

The Wednesday, March 31 update shows an increase of 63 positive cases and 6 deaths since Wednesday, March 24.

For reference, here are the cumulative numbers from the beginning of each month:

March 1, 2021 - 12,004
February 1, 2021 - 11,162
January 1, 2021 - 8,580
December 1 - 6,732
November 1 - 5,872
October 1 - 5,121
September 1 - 3,082
August 1 - 1,694
July 1 - 574
June 1 - 293
May 1 - 155
April 1 - 54
March 1 - 4

The Daily Status Report is now updated once daily at 3:00 p.m. to allow time to process and validate laboratory and case reports. The Daily Status Report is available at https://dph.georgia.gov/covid-19-daily-status-report.

Positive UGA COVID-19 Tests Reported Through DawgCheck - Week 32 (March 22-28)

The University of Georgia DawgCheck tool gives members of the campus community the ability to self-monitor and to facilitate information sharing internally and with the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH). Any student or employee with a positive COVID-19 test is required to report the test in DawgCheck.

Last Five Weeks of Tests

Positive COVID-19 Tests Reported Through DawgCheck

Visit the UGA Health Center Website with these graphs and other updates.

The table above reflects the total number of positive test results reported through DawgCheck each week. It is updated every Wednesday. Please note the following:

Positive tests reported through DawgCheck are from any of the approximately 50,000 faculty, staff, and students connected to the University of Georgia, whether located in Athens, extended campuses, extension offices across the state, or even other states and countries for students who elected to take online classes.
The totals may include reports from individuals who have not been on campus recently, there may be delays in reporting, and the totals may even include individuals who have recovered.
Therefore, the data does not serve as an accurate barometer of the current status of COVID-19 at any point in time at any one of UGA’s campuses.
Since August 10, UGA has supported surveillance testing (Legion Field) for asymptomatic individuals and clinical (Health Center) testing resources for symptomatic students as a means of distancing the two populations and optimizing the use of Health Center staff and the facility. Because students are showing symptoms when they request a test at the Health Center, it is expected that its tests would have a significantly higher positivity rate than would be the case for those who are asymptomatic when tested.
Results of testing at the University Health Center for the week of March 22 include a total of 115 COVID-19 tests; 8 were positive and 107 were negative. The positivity rate was 7.0%.
For the week of March 22, 64% of the tests in the “Other” category were performed in Athens-Clarke and its 5 adjoining counties, and the remaining 36% were located elsewhere in the state. No students reported a positive test done outside of the state. No instructional faculty members reported a positive test.

DawgCheck and other University of Georgia-related COVID information is available at the University Health Center website at https://uhs.uga.edu/healthtopics/covid-19-health-and-exposure-updates.

Frequency of Updates

This coronavirus email / text update is sent weekly during normal weeks, usually on Wednesdays, with other updates as necessary with important information.

Questions can still be directed to www.accgov.com/coronavirus, which will be updated regularly, the info line at 706-613-3333, or coronavirus@accgov.com.