December 27, 2021–7:70 p.m.

GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH

The State of Georgia saw a whopping 23,064 new COVID-19 cases over the weekend.

Those cases bring the statewide total to more than 1.36 million since the start of the pandemic.

There were 38 confirmed deaths in the numbers reported Monday by the Georgia Department of Public Health.

135 of the new cases were among Floyd County residents.

179 were in Bartow County, and 50 were reported in Gordon County.

32 more Polk County residents have tested positive while Chattooga County was up 18 cases from Friday.

No additional deaths were reported in the region.

Public health officials are saying the Omicron variant appears to spread more easily than previous variants, but initial research from the UK shows it doesn’t appear to cause as severe of illness as the other variants.