Georgia National Guard assists with COVID-19 response Published Jan. 12, 2022 By Capt. Amanda Russell, Georgia National Guard MARIETTA, Ga. – Members of the Georgia National Guard will help out at 15 COVID testing sites and 11 hospitals, handling logistical and administrative functions so that staff can spend more time with patients. “The Georgia National Guard is answering the call to COVID response missions as we have in the past and will continue to provide support until it’s no longer required,” said Maj. General Tom Carden, the adjutant general of the Georgia National Guard and member of the Governor’s Coronavirus Response Task Force. Georgia’s Department of Public Health and the Department of Community Health decided which test sites and hospitals needed the assistance. Soldiers and Airmen with a medical background will be chosen based on their skills, excluding those working in the civilian medical sector in critical roles in hospitals, ambulances or emergency rooms. Soldiers and Airmen from the Georgia National Guard were initially activated to support COVID-19 missions March 15, 2020. Medical support teams were the first to assist across the state. Later in the year, Georgia Guard members disinfected facilities, helped at food banks, and assisted with COVID-19 testing and sample collection.