Dr. Janet Memark District Health Director for Cobb & Douglas Public Health, issued the following message to the Cobb and Douglas County communities this afternoon:

Good afternoon Cobb and Douglas counties.

With the summer here, it seems that we are experiencing a nationwide surge of COVID-19 cases. Our district is not immune from the increase. We have been seeing an increase in cases throughout the state with a smaller increase in hospitalizations. Even though the number of those hospitalized has increased, it is still low compared to the numbers that we experienced during the winter surges. As of yet, we have not seen an increase in the number of deaths from COVID-19.

At this time, we are still characterized as being in low community transmission. Even though we are in low transmission, we are still seeing an awful lot of cases that are being transmitted from person to person. I wanted to urge the importance of getting the second booster shot if you are eligible. All adults over the age of 50 years old should consider getting their second booster to increase their immunity against COVID-19. If you are 12 years or older and have moderate to severe immunocompromising conditions, you should also consider getting the second booster shot.

This week the FDA and the ACIP approved the Pfizer vaccine booster for children ages five through 11 years of age, and Dr. Walensky, from the CDC, quickly accepted those recommendations. With that being said, our health department is getting ready to administer the Pfizer vaccine booster to this age group.

We are hoping that this phase of the pandemic will not result in surges of hospitalizations or deaths. Even though we are not seeing that at this time, the most vulnerable are still the elderly and immunocompromised. I get asked a lot about when people should get the second booster. At this time, if you are immunocompromised, you should definitely get it now. Remember, the older you are, the higher risk you have of complications and deaths from COVID-19. That should help guide you as to when you should get the booster.

Cobb & Douglas Public Health continues with the testing efforts and is awaiting the arrival of our self-testing kiosks. We are also working on plans to have additional home test kits available to the public very soon.

Please have a safe and enjoyable summer, but protect those who are most vulnerable.

Sincerely, 

Janet Pak Memark M.D., M.P.H, F.A.C.P.
District Health Director
District 3-1: Cobb & Douglas Public Health