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Hide yourself, New Jersey.
It was the federal government’s recommendation on Monday in all but one of the state’s 21 counties, as the Delta variant of COVID-19 continues to spread in communities almost a year and a half after the start of the ‘epidemic.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that in any county with “high” or “substantial” rates of coronavirus transmission, people should wear masks in indoor public places – even if they are vaccinated. Twenty counties now fall into one of these two categories, up from 10 just three days ago.
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The only exception was Warren County, in which the spread of the disease has been “moderate,” according to the CDC. But in all other counties, transmission rates have triggered masking recommendations for indoor gatherings, be it the gym, the grocery store, or a restaurant.
This includes Cape May County, which joined Monmouth County for having a “high” transmission rate.
Eighteen other counties have ‘substantial rates’ the next step down, including nine that were added to the list over the weekend: Camden, Cumberland, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Morris, Salem, Somerset and Sussex.
The categories are based on a combination of new cases per 100,000 people and the COVID-19 test positivity rate over the previous seven days.
The masking recommendations were issued last week amid the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant, which has become the predominant strain of the virus. The CDC has raised concerns about the increased risk of transmission, even among those who are fully vaccinated.
New Jersey reported 883 new cases of coronavirus and five more deaths on Sunday. The seven-day average of newly confirmed infections rose to 883, up 32% from last week and 299% from a month ago.
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Riley Yates can be reached at [email protected].
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