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Efforts target neighborhoods hit hard by COVID-19
DeKalb County will pass out 4,000 COVID-19 care kits containing two non-surgical masks and hand sanitizer to residents tomorrow, May 6, and Saturday, May 9, to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. DeKalb County Board of Health is supporting the initiative.
“Last Saturday, approximately 80 police and fire rescue recruits distributed 2,000 COVID-19 care packets, and they will be back out tomorrow and Saturday,” said DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond. “The DeKalb County Government and the Board of Health are redoubling our ongoing efforts to educate and protect our residents.”
The COVID-19 care packets also contains a card with tips on how to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and information encouraging residents to respond to the 2020 U. S. Census questionnaire.
The county’s outreach efforts will focus on economically disadvantaged communities that have been identified by the DeKalb County Board of Health as experiencing the highest number of COVID-19 infections. DeKalb County has the second highest number of confirmed cases in the state with more than 2,200 reported. There have been 58 confirmed deaths in the county from the pandemic.
According to Board of Health data, despite the high number of cases, DeKalb County has the second lowest death rate among counties that have been most impacted by COVID-19.
Residents experiencing headache, fever, cough, shortness of breath, muscle aches, loss of sense of smell or taste, or sore throat, are urged to call 404-294-3700, Option 1, to be scheduled for a test for COVID-19.
On April 23, CEO Thurmond issued his third executive order related to the COVID-19 pandemic in which he urged residents to wear face coverings at all times in public and continue to follow guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.