Northwest Georgia COVID-19 Task Force: Catoosa, Dade, Walker and Whitfield agencies join forces to respond

Emergency Management Agencies (EMAs) from Catoosa, Dade, Walker and Whitfield counties are joining forces to help Northwest Georgia communities manage and mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic. These EMAs have formed the Northwest Georgia COVID-19 Task Force consisting of community leaders from city and county governments, school systems, health departments, and emergency response agencies.

Because the lead agency for the state’s COVID-19 response is the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH), the task force will follow its guidance, especially with public information. The goal is for all COVID-19 public information to be consistent with federal (CDC) and state (Georgia DPH) messaging.

The Northwest Georgia COVID-19 Task Force will work with federal and state partners to provide residents of Catoosa, Dade, Walker, and Whitfield counties with the most up-todate and important information regarding COVID-19.

Local public health and county agencies have collaborated on emergency preparedness plans since 2003 and those plans have been exercised and implemented several times over the years.

Georgia DPH has created an informational Power Point presentation about COVID-19 that gives critical information about how it is spread, how to reduce risk of infection, and other general information. Download the presentation at the Georgia DPH website (https://dph.georgia. gov/novelcoronavirus) and learn more about precautions you can take now to protect yourself, your business, and your community.

For accurate and reliable information about COVID-19 log on to https://dph.georgia.gov/ novelcoronavirus or https:// www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019ncov/index.html.