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COVID Cases Increase to Highest Level
COVID testing
COVID testing.



COVID-19 cases are seeing the highest number of cases yet of the pandemic with many areas reporting double the number of cases from two previous peaks in January and September of 2021. Led by the Omicron variant, cases are reported as less severe, but still deadly in many instances. Case spikes coincide with the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, with case beginning to increase two weeks after the holidays.

COVID has infected more than 342 million people and killed over 5.5 million worldwide. Germany has reported a record number of daily coronavirus cases, with more than 140,000 new infections, while Australia recorded its deadliest day of the pandemic so far last Friday.

In DeKalb County, there have been 4,989 total cases reported as of January 15, 2022, data, with 4,482 having been reported recovered. There are 507 active cases with a reported 90 deaths attributed to the virus.

Tennessee has had a total of 1,653,144 cases and reported 16,417 confirmed deaths with another 5,278 probable deaths attributed to COVID-19. The state reported its highest one-day total of new cases of the pandemic on January 10 with 21,857 new cases.

Davidson is reporting 163,719 total cases, with 143,307 recovered. They have 20,412 active cases and report 1,425 deaths to the virus. There are also 3,577 people hospitalized. The metro area saw its highest spike of cases since the pandemic began on January 6, 2022, with 2,753 new cases alone.

Neighboring Rutherford County is also seeing a record-breaking spike, with 79,517 total cases and 70,354 reported recovered. They have seen 781 deaths during the pandemic, with 1,545 hospitalized. Their new one-day record of cases occurred on January 14, 2022, with 1,299 cases.

Wilson County is also seeing a huge jump in cases, doubling the previous two spikes in cases. They report 34,861 total cases with 30,740 recovered. They report 423 deaths, and 844 hospitalized. They had 470 new cases on January 14 alone, a new one-day record.

In Cannon County, there have been 3,288 total cases, with 2,981 recovered and 51 deaths. There are 96 hospitalized.

Warren County has 9,973 total cases, with 9,076 recovered. They report 154 deaths and 197 hospitalized.

To the east, White County has 6,565 total cases with 5,964 having recovered. They report 117 deaths and 252 hospitalized.

Putnam County is also seeing a big spike in cases, with 19,918 total and 18,065 recovered. They have 270 deaths from the virus and 590 in the hospital.

Smith County is also up with 4,943 total cases and 4,470 recovered. They have 67 deaths and 129 hospitalized.

U.S. residents can now order free at-home coronavirus tests from the federal government by phone by calling 800-232-0233. Callers can request four at-home tests per household. Residents can also use the internet by going to Covidtests.gov where people can enter their mailing address and order four rapid, at-home tests.

Daily COVID-19 data reports have shifted to weekly reports. Data for the previous week will be posted each Wednesday. Check tn.gov/health/cedep/ncov.html for data updates on Wednesdays.

Officials say the best protection against COVID-19 and its variants is to be vaccinated, and if you have already been vaccinated to get the booster shot. As always, health officials urge the use of masks when in public places, and the practice of using hand sanitizer when possible.

Current vaccines are expected to protect against severe illness, hospitalizations, and deaths due to infection with the Omicron variant. However, breakthrough infections in people who are fully vaccinated are likely to occur. With other variants, like Delta, vaccines have remained effective at preventing severe illness, hospitalizations, and death. The recent emergence of Omicron further emphasizes the importance of vaccination and boosters.