The good news? Polk County is starting the week with a significantly lower number of new cases than has been reported in the past days. The bad? There’s also new hospital patients being treated.

Two new hospitalizations were reported by the Georgia Department of Public Health in the August 3 report and seven new cases, bringing those tallies respectively to 34 and 682 on the day in the afternoon update for COVID-19. Polk County’s number of deaths remained at nine in the latest report from DPH as well.

The Georgia Department of Community Health has yet to post an update on nursing and long term care home cases and deaths since they posted their last update on July 31.

Polk County’s tally of deaths increased by three on Sunday – a fifth of the state total for the day at 15 – which has drastically dropped in the past days as well. Today’s death toll from the virus was just two in total, bringing the statewide figure since tracking began to 3,842.

The county did account for two of the 60 new hospital patients reported on the day, bringing the state figure to 19,124 in all since late February, and out of that 3,512 patients have needed treatment for COVID-19 in intensive care.

As of August 3, an additional 2,271 positives were reported to bring the tally statewide of positives for the virus so far to 195,435 people who have tested positive out of more than 1.6 million tests administered. Currently, the state is reporting an 11% even infection rate based on the number of tests administered and reported back as of the afternoon report.

Regionally, case growth remains on the rise all around Polk County. Bartow’s figures remained the highest at 1,618 positives since tracking began, with 210 people who have needed hospital treatment and 60 deaths reported. Paulding’s latest figure stood at 1,452 positives, with 121 patients who have been treated for the virus and 19 deaths in total.

In Floyd County, the total stood at 1,283 positives, with 83 patients and 15 deaths reported, and Haralson stood at 196 cases, 19 hospitalizations and six deaths.

Nationally, the tally remained on the rise as well. Another 47,576 positives were confirmed on Sunday, bringing the overall count of COVID-19 cases in the nation since tracking began to 4,649,102. A new 469 were reported to bring the total to 154,471 from the virus.