Mercer University announced 36 new cases of COVID-19 between the Macon and Atlanta campuses in its weekly testing summary posted Friday.
Of the 36 total positive cases, 33 are among students on the Macon campus. One case is a faculty or staff member on the Macon campus, and two cases are among students on the Atlanta campus.
The 36 positive cases come from a total of 608 tests completed over the week of Sept. 11-17.
For this week's period, the positivity rate — the indicator that looks at what percentage of COVID-19 tests come back positive — was 5.9%. The positivity rate is considered by public health experts to be an important measure for gauging levels of community spread.
The update shows an increase in cases from the previous week. Between Sept. 4 to Sept. 10, the university announced 17 new coronavirus cases and 567 COVID-19 tests — a 2.9% positivity rate.
This week's 36 new cases makes this week's release the third-highest case number update since the start of the school year.
Mercer has documented 245 total positive COVID-19 cases since the onset of the pandemic.
Members of the Mercer community are directed to call Mercer Medicine at (478) 301-4111 or the Student Health Center 24/7 hotline at (478) 301-7425 if they begin displaying symptoms. Students who are enrolled in a course in which a student has tested positive will receive an email notifying them of their risk.
Caitlyn Patton contributed reporting.
BREAKING: Mercer announces 36 new COVID-19 cases
