Six cases - or three?

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Without any local knowledge of where the cases may have come from, on Monday evening the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) doubled the number of positive tests for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) for Elbert County residents from three to six.

Over the weekend a report on long-term health care facilities showed up on Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s official website and in that report it was reported Heardmont Nursing Home in Elbert County had three positive tests of either nursing home residents or healthcare workers at that facility. No one in Elbert County knows where those cases are.

“We do not have COVID-19 cases at Heardmont,” said Heardmont Administrator David Milner Tuesday morning. “This is definitely an error. We give our report every day and we let (the DPH) know that we did not have any cases. Then on Saturday morning I got a link from the Atlanta-Journal Constitution and I let them know we did not have COVID-19 at Heardmont.”

In three previous cases of positive tests, Elbert County Emergency Management Agency Director Chuck Almond said DPH has been able to verify through documentation the positive cases in Elbert County.

In this case, there has been no documentation on the three extra positive tests.

Simply put, Almond said “I do not know.” 

On Tuesday morning Almond reaffirmed that the DPH had not notified him of any cases at Heardmont Nursing Home.

With Monday night’s total of six positives cases from DPH, according to that agency it brings the total number of tests in Elbert County to 62.

Of those tests, 52 were done by The Medical Center (TMC) of Elberton, according to Practice Administrator Brooke McDowell. Four of the 62 tests were done at an unidentified drive-through testing facility in Athens. Four more of the 62 tests were done in unknown locations, one of which was verified by Chuck Almond, but Almond said Monday night he cannot verify the three tests reported on the DPH’s website Monday evening. 

Elbert Memorial Hospital (EMH) has verified they have tested one person and Piedmont (Athens Regional) Hospital has verified they have tested one person.

In all, 48 negative test results have been reported in Elbert County, 47 at TMC and one at EMH.

Pending results total eight, four from TMC and four from the unidentified drive-through facility in Athens. In the cases of the Athens tests, Almond has said that it is likely those test results will not be known.

Of the six positive test results, TMC has reported one, Piedmont has reported one and four positive tests are from an unknown source. Almond was able to verify one of the four positives from the unknown source.

Monday night Almond said the reporting on COVID-19 cases in Elbert County is “fluid.”

“I talked to (Almond) and he told me that all the cases that had been reported in Elbert County were verified by the Georgia Department of Public Health, and in this case he said they have not called him,” said Milner Tuesday morning. “We have no COVID-19 at Heardmont and we are taking precautions. This is definitely an error.”