As the number of protests and protestors grew in New Jersey this past weekend, state officials are watchful of a resurgence of COVID-19 cases.
“Do we get concerned about a potential spike coming out of this? Yeah, it does concern us,” answered Gov. Phil Murphy at his daily briefing June 5. “I want to make sure everybody who is protesting out there does it peacefully and does it responsibly, including watching out for their health and the health of those with them.”
The governor has maintained since issueing his stay at home order that residents in New Jersey have the right to protest. When the protests were about the policies Murphy has directed, he voiced his concern about social distancing and face masks.
Gravity of Situation
For those protesting about the death of George Floyd, the first-term governor has been less stringent about social distancing. He has stated the marches are of a more important matter, but has continued to stress face coverings and masks should be worn by all those involved.
“We respect completely your right to protest, particularly given the gravity of why folks are protesting, but please do it responsibly, as much distance and something…to cover your face,” said Murphy.
State officials urged those at marches and protests to get tested in the days afterwards.
‘Get Tested’
“If you do participate, get tested. We’ve got capacity. We’ve spent the past three months building up capacity unlike any American state. It’s there,” said Murphy.
In terms of capacity, the governor related a story of one of his children who went to get tested and noticed only one other car in line to get tested, in a place with a lot more capacity.
“I’m concerned but that’s not a reason not to protest, but it is a reason to be responsible. And on that list, I think, should be to get tested,” said Murphy.
Daily Data
As of June 7, the cumulative number of coronavirus cases in New Jersey reached 164,164 with 426 new cases and 79 new deaths, bringing that total to 12,176.
Of the total deaths in North Jersey, Essex County has the most with 1,707, followed by Bergen at 1,618, Hudson with 1,218, Passaic at 972, Morris at 626, Sussex at 149 and Warren with 132.
State Testing
Officials reported 1,769 patients are hospitalized with coronavirus while 183 patients were discharged. The north tier had 744 patients hospitalized, the central 584 and the south 441.
Of those hospitalized, 503 are in intensive care units and 379 on ventilators. There are currently 16 patients in field hospitals, with 475 treated overall.
Hudson Tops County Count
Hudson has the most cumulative cases in the state with 18,565, followed by Bergen at 18,512, Essex at 18,077, Passaic at 16,449, Middlesex at 16,198, Union at 16,186, Ocean at 9,022, Monmouth at 8,478, Mercer at 7,166, Camden at 6,799, Morris at 6,592, Burlington at 4,785, Somerset at 4,662, Cumberland at 2,564, Atlantic at 2,364, Gloucester at 2,328, Warren at 1,189, Sussex at 1,140, Hunterdon at 1,023, Salem at 675 and Cape May at 646.
Another 744 cases are still under investigation to determine where the person resides.
Demographic Breakdown
In regards to the underlying disease of those who have passed, 59% had cardiovascular disease, 43% diabetes, 32% other chronic diseases, 17% neurological conditions, 15% chronic renal disease, 10% cancer and 14% other.
A census of ages for 9,941 confirmed deaths shows 47% of deaths are of those 80 year old and up, 33% in the range of 65-80, 16% between 50-65 and 4% under the age of 49.
Long-term Care Facilities
Health officials noted 548 long-term care facilities are reporting at least one case of COVID-19 and accounted for 34,395 of the cases, broken down between 22,965 residents and 11,430 staff. The state’s official death total will now be reported as those that are lab confirmed, which was 5,358 on June 5. The facilities are reporting to the state 6,139 residents deaths and 109 staff deaths.
In a by-county breakdown:
Bergen County
- 63 Facilities with Outbreaks
- 3,195 Total Resident Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 1,646 Total Staff Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 919 Resident Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
- 11 Staff Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
Essex County
- 46 Facilities with Outbreaks
- 2,140 Total Resident Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 999 Total Staff Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 557 Resident Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
- 19 Staff Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
Morris County
- 42 Facilities with Outbreaks
- 1,396 Total Resident Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 677 Total Staff Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 458 Resident Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
- 3 Staff Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
Passaic County
- 25 Facilities with Outbreaks
- 1,233 Total Resident Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 727 Total Staff Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 362 Resident Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
- 14 Staff Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
Hudson County
- 15 Facilities with Outbreaks
- 976 Total Resident Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 523 Total Staff Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 234 Resident Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
- 7 Staff Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
Sussex County
- 7 Facilities with Outbreaks
- 254 Total Resident Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 134 Total Staff Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 107 Resident Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
- 4 Staff Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
Warren County
- 7 Facilities with Outbreaks
- 405 Total Resident Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 131 Total Staff Cases at Long Term Care Facilities
- 111 Resident Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
- 1 Staff Deaths reported by Long Term Care Facilities
