CHEROKEE COUNTY, Ga. — The White House task force is raising concerns about three metro Atlanta counties where it is seeing an increase in COVID-19 cases.
The weekly report singles out Hall, Clarke and Cherokee counties and it’s calling on these areas to do more to stop the spread. Meanwhile, a second point of concern in this week’s report ties back to college campuses.
Channel 2 investigative reporter Nicole Carr spoke with Cherokee resident and college students in Georgia about their concerns.
[MORE: Read the latest weekly White House task force report]
The first two times Josefina Arbitu-Vijella got tested for COVID-19, it was because she was exposed to positive cases. This week, it’s because the health department employee is ill.
“I told the doctor I thought it might be the flu, but he said 'well, it’s not the flu season, so you should go take the test,” she said.
Arbitu-Vijella lives in Cherokee County, one of three counties noted in this week’s White House COVID-19 report as areas of concern.
The task force says they’re seeing a rise in cases in the counties and “this spread must be contained.” This week’s report continues to show the number of new positive cases stabilizing.
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But it marks Georgia remaining in a red zone for cases, the 12th highest rate in the country for new cases. Seventy-five percent of Georgia counties have moderate or high rates of transmission.
The report notes concerns that there may be an under-reporting of COVID-19 related hospitalizations.
“A lot of people are getting confident about the virus. Getting used to that. It’s there and it’s going to be OK. It’s not going to happen to me. But it can happen,” Arbitu-Vijella said.
“The amount of people sitting around the bar with no masks on. They’re close to each other. I said ‘This is not going to be good for the rest of the semester,’ and it hasn’t let up,” University of Georgia student Arianna Mbunwe told Carr.
The report also suggests for bars and restaurants in college towns to reduce hours and capacity based on case volume, as students are losing progress with students' return to campus.
On Wednesday, UGA reported 1,400 new cases for the week. Mbunwe worries surveillance testing is still not as widely available as it should be on campus.
“Like a few days ago, the earliest date you could get for surveillance testing was like a week away. And I had an exposure scare. I had to drive 45 minutes all the way to Gwinnett County to get a test,” she said.
The report also noted one thing that has been talked about repeatedly: experts discourage students from returning home to isolate if they’ve tested positive, for fear of community spread in multiple areas.
It also suggests that in addition to increased campus testing that students are recruited to contact trace.
Cox Media Group
