Gov. Kemp Visits GA Barbershop For A Cut; New Cases, More Deaths

ATLANTA, GA — It’s been nearly two weeks since Gov. Brian Kemp granted gyms, barber shops, hair salons, tattoo parlors and bowling alleys the opportunity to reopen in Georgia. The governor shared a photo Thursday as he had his hair cut at a local barbershop; both Kemp and the barber wore masks.

Even as the state slowly tries to go back to normal, the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths continue to rise.

As of noon Thursday, the coronavirus outbreak in Georgia included 30 more deaths, the Georgia Department of Public Health released in its daily report. The updated numbers reflect an increase of nearly 700 new cases from noon Thursday, bringing the total to 31,260 coronavirus cases statewide and a total of 1,335 deaths.

Of the 5,804 total hospitalizations among positive cases, 1,363 are intensive care unit admissions. These reflect information at the time cases were reported to the state health department.

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Fulton County leads the state with 3,350 cases, followed by DeKalb County with 2,390, Gwinnett County with 2,233, Cobb County with 2,006, Hall County with 1,924 and Dougherty County with 1,555. Fulton has the highest death count at 136, followed by Dougherty County with 126 and Cobb County with 107.

The public health website provides graphs of cumulative cases and deaths over time. Numbers over the last 14 days may be incomplete due to cases not yet reported as well as pending test results.

"A confirmed case is defined as a person who has tested positive for 2019 novel coronavirus," says the Georgia Department of Health. "Health care providers diagnose patients with COVID-19 and they, along with laboratories, report the COVID-19 cases to the Georgia DPH. These numbers are preliminary and may change as more information is gathered on a person under investigation."

Kemp said Georgia distributed its largest shipment of PPE to local hospitals, healthcare facilities and test sites. The shipment was distributed by the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency in cooperation with the Georgia Department of Public Health.

More than 600 orders, equaling 150 pallets of PPE and supplies, left the Georgia Department of Public Health warehouse bound for hospitals, healthcare facilities, and test sites throughout the state.

Additionally, the team delivered four urgent PPE resupplies to the Department of Agriculture, Georgia Tech CVS test site, and the Georgia Department of Corrections. Altogether, Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency shipped 38,420 face shields, 423,000 gloves, 432,150 surgical masks, and 81,120 coveralls to frontline healthcare workers.

"We know that protecting our frontline workers is critical to our success in the fight against COVID-19," Kemp said. "Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency and Department of Public Health are leaving no stone unturned to acquire and distribute PPE, and today's shipment is reflective of the priority that we are placing on keeping these workers safe."

Globally, more than 3.7 million people have been infected by COVID-19, and over 264,000 people have died, Johns Hopkins University reported Thursday at noon. In the U.S., more than 1.2 million people have been infected and over 73,000 people have died from COVID-19.

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