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OCEAN COUNTY, NJ – Twelve people in Ocean County have tested positive for the most contagious variant of the coronavirus originating in the UK, with the highest number of cases in New Jersey, state officials said Monday .
There are 31 cases that have been detected statewide, Judith Persichilli, the state’s health commissioner, said in her update on the virus. Of the 31 cases, three involve people who had traveled, she said. She did not say if any of the travel-related cases originated from Ocean County.
Burlington and Essex counties have each reported four cases, and neighboring Monmouth County has had two, Persichilli said. Middlesex and Morris counties each have two cases of the variant, and Atlantic, Hudson, Mercer, Passaic and Warren each have one, she said.
Officials are monitoring the spread of the most contagious variant of the virus, which was first detected in Ocean County in early January. This case, in a man in his 60s who had not traveled or had been clearly exposed to other patients, was the first in the state. This man later recovered, but officials reported the death of a man in Wayne in late January who had significant underlying symptoms, due to complications from COVID-19 caused by the UK variant.
According to David Cennimo, pediatric infectious disease expert and assistant professor at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, the variant, first seen in the UK, is around 50% more contagious than the “wild-type” virus.
Brian Lippai, chief information officer for the Ocean County Health Department, said he did not have details of the 12 Ocean County cases.
“I only know that many cases are from people who have traveled,” Lippai said. “This is definitely something the state and we are monitoring. Expect more cases, but we are still learning how protected new vaccines are.”
Gov. Phil Murphy said concern over the variants underscored the need for New Jersey residents to continue wearing masks and practicing social distancing to slow the spread of the virus.
“That’s a big part of why we’re cautious,” Murphy said, noting that Persichilli and his staff “look like a hawk”.
“We want to make sure that we don’t take anything unknown for granted,” he said.
The rate of transmission has dropped both statewide and in the central region of the state, which includes Ocean County. Statewide, the transmission rate was 8.5 and in Ocean County it was 8.73, Persichilli said.
And while those numbers are encouraging, Murphy said it was important to continue all efforts while the state continues to distribute the vaccine.
“It’s not one or the other or for the next few months for us,” he said. “Keep doing this (masks and removal) plus the vaccine.”
With the report by Montana Samuels
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