New Jersey on Monday reported another 1,068 confirmed COVID-19 cases and two confirmed deaths as the rate of transmission has gradually declined in the past week.
The state’s seven-day average for confirmed coronavirus positive fell to 1,696, a 10% decrease from a week ago and a 10% increase from a month ago.
The statewide rate of transmission was 1.04 on Monday, down from 1.16 on Thursday. When the transmission rate is 1, that means cases have leveled off at the current numbers, while anything above 1 indicates the outbreak is expanding.
Burlington and Cumberland are the only two of the state’s 21 counties in the “high” risk category for coronavirus transmission, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC deems nine counties to be at “medium” risk: Atlantic, Bergen, Camden, Cape May, Gloucester, Monmouth, Ocean, Salem and Union. The remaining 10 counties — Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Morris, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex and Warren — are designated “low” risk.
There were 902 patients with confirmed or suspected coronavirus cases reported across 69 of New Jersey’s 71 hospitals as of Sunday night. Of those hospitalized, 102 are in intensive care and 27 are on ventilators.
The statewide positivity rate for tests conducted Wednesday, the most recent day for which data is available, was 10.36%.
The CDC considers positivity rates above 10% to be “high.” New Jersey’s statewide positivity rate is substantially lower than its peak of 40.83% on Jan. 1 during the height of the omicron variant.
TOTAL NUMBERS
New Jersey has reported 2.3 million total confirmed COVID-19 cases since it announced its first known case on March 4, 2020.
The Garden State has also recorded 417,472 positive antigen or rapid tests, which are considered probable cases, as of Monday. There are also numerous cases that likely never have been counted, including at-home positive tests that are not included in the state’s numbers.
The state of 9.2 million residents has reported 34,754 COVID-19 deaths — 31,638 confirmed fatalities and 3,116 probable ones, as of Friday.
New Jersey has the ninth-most coronavirus deaths per capita in the US — behind Mississippi, Arizona, Oklahoma, Alabama, West Virginia, New Mexico, Tennessee and Arkansas — as of the latest data reported on Sept. 12. Last summer, the state had the most deaths per capita in the nation.
VACCINATION NUMBERS
More than 7.07 million people who work, live or study in New Jersey have reached fully vaccinated status. More than 7.9 million have received a first dose since vaccinations began in the state on Dec. 15, 2020.
More than 4.29 million people in the state eligible for boosters have received one.
LONG-TERM CARE NUMBERS
At least 9,714 of the state’s COVID-19 deaths have been among residents and staff members at nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, according to the most recent state data.
Of the active outbreaks at 358 facilities, there are 7,472 current cases among residents and 6,840 cases among staff, as of the latest data.
GLOBAL NUMBERS
There have been more than 618 million COVID-19 cases reported across the globe as of Monday, according to Johns Hopkins University’s coronavirus database. More than 6.5 million people have died because of the virus, the data shows.
The US has reported the most cumulative cases (more than 96 million) and deaths (at least 1.05 million) of any nation.
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Nicolas Fernandes may be reached at nfernandes@njadvancemedia.com
