Could it be the start of a trend? It is likely too early to tell, but the number of COVID-19 cases only increased by single digits on the day according to the Georgia Department of Public Health.

Total cases increased by another four in the past 24 hours according to DPH data released this afternoon, bringing the overall total to 1,220 people who have tested positive for the virus since tracking began statewide. Also in today’s report, the number of hospital patients went down by one to settle at 78 overall. The county’s overall positive rate remained at 14.8% as of this afternoon.

That is not indicative of someone coming out of the hospital, but likely a reporting issue that has now been clarified and the numbers updated to reflect the issue. The DPH has not taken away hospital patients from the overall tally previously due to them being released after treatment for the virus.

Polk County’s number of deaths remained at 15 as the month of September begins, and the second full three-month period since the first local case was officially reported in mid-March.

Statewide, Georgia’s total of COVID-19 cases jumped upward again at 2,287 new positives, bringing the overall total to 272,697 positives since tracking began. That is out of a total number of more than 2.6 million tests conducted statewide. Another 243 hospital patients were being treated for the virus in the past 24 hours in medical centers statewide, and brought the total number who have been admitted to 24,847. The number of ICU admissions overall now stood at 4,537.

Unfortunately, Georgia lost another 105 of its citizens in the past 24 hours due to the virus or complications worsened by contracting COVID-19, which brought the overall total of dead to 5,733 since late February.

Nationwide, the number of COVID-19 deaths now stood at 183,050, up another 185 people confirmed from Sunday to Monday. The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases now sat at 6,004,443 nationwide, up another 32,087 from Sunday to Monday as the month of August came to a close, per the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest figures.