Cobb Reporter

The omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, is driving the increase in coronavirus cases in Georgia, a public health microbiologist said.

Amber Schmidtke said in an online digest that omicron is driving cases up in several parts of the United States, including Georgia, even as over 26,000 new cases of the coronavirus were reported in the state over a the holiday weekend, FOX 5 Atlanta said.

“Omicron is now the biggest wave that Georgia has ever experienced. Meanwhile, we are early in this surge and only three days past Christmas. Things will likely get worse before they get better,” Schmidtke tweeted on Twitter.

Public health microbiologist Amber Schmidtke | Facebook

The omicron (B.1.1.529) variant was reported by South Africa on Nov. 24, 2021, to the World Health Organization as a new SARS-CoV-2 variant, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. The variant was initially detected in specimens collected on Nov. 11, 2021, in Botswana and on Nov. 14, 2021, in South Africa. The first confirmed case of omicron in the U.S. was identified on Dec. 1.

“As of Dec. 20, 2021, omicron has been detected in most states and territories and is rapidly increasing the proportion of COVID-19 cases it is causing,” the CDC said.

Even as the coronavirus case numbers increase daily in Georgia, Omicron “is spreading faster than any previous variant,” the Georgia Department of Public Health’s Facebook page said.

The seven-day average for new COVID-19 cases in Georgia is now at 8,445, FOX 5 said. Hospitalizations spiked by more than 500 in a recent weekend.

“In Georgia, 6,442,925 people or 60% of the state has received at least one dose,” USAFACTS said. “Overall, 5,377,928 people or 50% of Georgia's population has been fully vaccinated.”

Georgia had over 1.3 million confirmed cases of coronavirus as of Dec. 28, the Georgia Department of Public Health’s website said.

Confirmed deaths were 26,313; hospitalizations, 93,893; and intensive care unit admissions, 14,313.