Gov. Brian Kemp
Georgia college professors warn of COVID danger as state pushes mask-less fall
Georgia Tech’s current COVID-19 prevention measures are not sufficient to prevent widespread transmission of the virus, a biology professor wrote this week in a letter to Provost Steve McLaughlin. “I will not be surprised if we have 5,000 cases in the next month, half undetected and most asymptomatic or very mild, and more than half […]
Kemp sends more National Guard troops to COVID fight as cases and divisions surge
Georgia Public Health Commissioner Dr. Kathleen Toomey shared a frank and disturbing snapshot of the spread of COVID-19 in the state Monday. “We are, as I’ve mentioned before, a little behind some of our other southern states where we are with the delta surge, and this is indeed a delta surge,” she told reporters at […]
Georgia college professors back to campus lecturing on COVID delta 101
College students across Georgia are back to hitting the books and tablets as a new semester began this month on campuses across the state. But this fall semester, many professors say they have more than grading and lecturing to worry about. COVID-19 cases are surging as the delta variant spreads among Georgia’s unvaccinated masses, and […]
Georgia behavioral health services strained by budget woes, pandemic fallout
Officials with the state Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities say the agency is feeling the squeeze as more people turn to their services and a pandemic-weary workforce eyes lower-stress, higher-paid opportunities elsewhere. But even so, the state agency will submit a spending plan for next year to the governor that – as requested […]
Governor sends Georgia National Guard troops to help COVID-stressed hospitals
The governor has called in the Georgia National Guard to help hospitals as they continue to swell again with COVID-19 patients. Gov. Brian Kemp announced Tuesday the deployment of 105 National Guard personnel to 10 hospitals across the state, from Brunswick to Gainesville. Most of the hospitals receiving National Guard troops have reported severe overcrowding […]
State superintendent says vaccine saved him during severe COVID bout
Georgia School Superintendent Richard Woods has recovered from a severe breakthrough case of COVID-19 that left him hospitalized, Woods announced in a statement Tuesday. Woods, a Republican who took office in 2015, contracted the illness during the summer after being vaccinated in March. “I personally experienced what thousands of our fellow Georgians have been through […]
FDA grants full approval to Pfizer’s COVID shot, more vaccine mandates predicted
The full federal approval of Pfizer-BioNTech’s two-dose vaccine marks a new chapter in the battle against COVID-19. In Georgia, where vaccination rates are low and resistance is high, experts are hoping it will sway on-the-fence residents into taking their medicine and, if not, spur employers into requiring them to. The green light from the U.S. […]
Kemp helps businesses bypass local COVID rules as disease packs hospitals
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed an executive order Thursday aimed at preventing local governments from imposing COVID-19 restrictions such as mask mandates or vaccine requirements. Under the new rule, businesses can voluntarily comply with local rules, but they cannot be forced to do so. Kemp framed the order as a protection for local businesses from […]
Sickle cell research chair named for state Rep. Smyre threatened by budget squeeze
A proposal that would boost research for sickle cell anemia in Georgia could offer an early glimpse of some of the funding fights to come next year. A research chair named in honor of long-time state Rep. Calvin Smyre was announced in Columbus earlier this year with the governor and other state officials on hand after […]
Afghan evacuees to arrive in the U.S. through Virginia, Wisconsin military bases
WASHINGTON — The first U.S. stop for the nearly 2,000 Afghan interpreters and other refugees evacuated so far amid the collapse of the Afghan government has been central Virginia’s Fort Lee military base. Tapped for its East Coast location and its ability to quickly ramp up to serve as a temporary host installation, the Army base […]
Georgia to expand hospital staffing in response to delta surge
As COVID-19 case numbers continue to mount, the state will spend another $125 million to help hospitals hire 1,500 new staff with dozens of them directed to rural hospitals, Gov. Brian Kemp announced Monday. “I think the additional staffing that we talked about and announced today is just going to continue to help them with […]
2020 census shows increase in Georgia minorities, population shift to metro areas
Georgia’s population is more diverse and more concentrated around cities than ever before, according to data released by the U.S. Census Bureau Thursday. More Georgians 18 and older told census takers in 2020 that they identify as more than one race – 5.9%, compared with 1.5% in 2010. The numbers of Black, Latino and Asian […]