Eight People Hospitalized With COVID In Hoboken, 7 Unvaccinated: See New Case Numbers

HOBOKEN, NJ — After Hoboken's hospital went nearly two months without a coronavirus patient, the city reported six people hospitalized with the virus two weeks ago, and by this weekend, the number had climbed to eight — seven of them unvaccinated, the city reported Saturday.

With the new omicron variant spreading quickly around New Jersey and people gathering for the holidays, cases have climbed — but locally, the hospitalization rate for those infected is lower than in December 2020. The vaccines are said to drastically reduce hospitalization and death.

[Update: Free Testing Locations Added In Hoboken This Week: Click Here]

Eighty percent of Hoboken residents 12 and over are now fully vaccinated, and 91 percent of residents 12 and over have gotten at least their first shot.

On Saturday, the city released a new set of case numbers for the past week, noting that the statistics from some days were inflated because of a delay in reporting numbers to the city by one of the labs."Nonetheless, cases remain on the rise, mirroring trends from across New Jersey and the rest of the TriState area," the city said.

The city reported that 209 cases were confirmed among residents from Dec. 11-17, but again, some of those were positive tests from prior days.

Hoboken has lost 56 residents to the virus since the start of the pandemic, none since this past summer.

Last year at this time, Hoboken lost two residents in early December and 30 people were in the hospital with the virus that December. READ MORE: Hoboken Loses Second Resident In A Month To Coronavirus (December 2020)

At that time, the city was recording approximately 83 cases a week — so infected people were more likely to end up hospitalized a year ago than now.

However, officials caution that the omicron variant could still be deadly, particularly when spread to more vulnerable groups.

Local Vaccination Rates

Here are the vaccination rates in Hoboken as of Saturday, the mayor said:

First Dose

All ages: 79 percent

12 and over: 91 percent

18 and over: 88 percent

30 and over: 98 percent

65 and over: nearly 100 percent

Second Dose

All ages: 70 percent

12 and over: 80 percent

18 and over: 77 percent

30 and over: 87 percent

65 and over: 99 percent

Where To Get A Test Or Vaccine In Hoboken

Appointments to be vaccinated or get a test via the city can be booked online at www.hobokennj.gov/vaccine or at www.hobokennj.gov/testing

Read more of the mayor's update, including testing and vaccine clinics, here.

READ MORE: Omicron Variant Makes Up 13 Percent Of NJ/NYC COVID Cases

Other COVID Information

• Scientsts studying the new Omnicron variant — identified first in a sample in South Africa last month — say it's more transmissible than some variants but are unsure so far how effective vaccinations are against it. More studies will be done.

• In America, as of Sunday, 806,000 Americans have died of COVID since the start of the pandemic.
• The daily death rate is highest right now in Michigan, Montana, Arizona, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. Read the state rankings here.
• The CDC estimates that more than 140,000 children have lost a close caregiver to the virus.
• Vaccinations now been recommended by the CDC for adults and for children 5 and over.
• Read the statement about Omicron and find links to get tested or vaccinated in New Jersey with this link.

Hudson County is now seeing "high” transmission rates of the coronavirus, up from moderate, the latest data shows.

New Jersey has launched a "vaccine appointment finder," which can be found here.

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