Georgia gov: Months until public has virus vaccine

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp urged people to keep abiding by public health guidance as the state prepares to receive its first doses of the coronavirus vaccine.

As in many other states, that initial shipment will be distributed among the most vulnerable and first responders.

"The limited amount of vaccine doses we will receive in the coming days will be going to the most vulnerable and those on the front lines of fighting COVID-19," the Republican governor said Tuesday.

Kemp also touted his own handling of the pandemic, saying: "We have been able to successfully balance both lives and livelihoods. Georgia businesses have been allowed to resume operations and people have been allowed to exercise their constitutional freedoms. Not every state has taken this approach."

Still, the number of confirmed and suspected coronavirus infections has soared more than 70% in Georgia in the last week.

Hospitals continue to sound alarms about their ability to absorb new COVID-19 patients and a few schools gave up in-person instruction for the remaining two weeks before Christmas holidays begin.

The last week has seen a rapid takeoff in new infections, with the state averaging more than 5,000 confirmed and suspected cases each day as of Monday.

Even just the confirmed cases, based off molecular PCR tests, are now above the high set on July 24, when hospitals statewide were groaning with cases and schools were pushing off the start of the academic year because of the high number of infections.

Despite the rapid rise, Georgia still ranks only 44th among the states for the most new cases per capita in the past 14 days, because cases are spreading so rapidly everywhere else.

The Georgia Department of Public Health still rates 60% of Georgia's counties as having high transmission.

For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms. But it can cause severe symptoms in and be fatal for others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems.