Ocean County Seeing 'Substantial' COVID-19 Spread, CDC Says

TOMS RIVER, NJ — With COVID-19 hospitalizations and infection rates rising significantly in the last seven days, Ocean County has been labeled an area of "potential spread" by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Ocean County was one of six New Jersey counties to receive the designation as COVID-19 transmission rates rise around the nation, fueled by the delta variant. Ocean County has "substantial" transmission, according to the CDC data.

The CDC said both vaccinated and unvaccinated Americans should return to wearing a mask indoors in public places, particularly in areas with "substantial and high transmission" of coronavirus. The CDC change comes as infection rates have risen significantly across the country, fueled by the delta variant of the virus that causes COVID-19.

The CDC issued the new mask recommendations Tuesday. On Wednesday, Gov. Phil Murphy and New Jersey Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said they "strongly recommend" residents return to wearing masks, following up on the CDC's recommendation.

While the CDC also recommends that children wear masks in school this fall, Murphy has not yet said it will be mandatory in schools.

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Ocean County has seen a spike in the seven-day average of several metrics, according to CDC data. There has been a 59 percent increase in the number of cases over the last seven days, and 218 percent increase in the number of people newly hospitalized in Ocean County with COVID-19, to 35 patients.

The percent positivity has been rising steadily since the beginning of July, and now is at 4.98 percent for the seven-day average, second-highest in the state behind Monmouth County.

"Our metrics are trending in the wrong direction, and new data suggests the delta variant is more transmissible even among vaccinated individuals, which is why we are making this strong recommendation," Murphy and Persichilli said in a joint statement.

The CDC recommendation, which came out days after the American Academy of Pediatrics urged that students wear masks and also that they be learning in-person full time, have heightened concerns among parents that a new mask mandate is coming in New Jersey.

As of Monday, Murphy said that is not the case, even as districts prepare for full-day, fully in-school instruction in the fall.

"The CDC matters a lot to us," Murphy said Monday. "We largely look to the CDC for a lot of guidance. We always take that into consideration, but you have to take into account the reality of what your state looks like. A national recommendation may or may not be consistent with the facts on the ground."

The state is not mandating the use of masks among unvaccinated students, but leaving the decisions up to school districts, Murphy said, continuing a change he made in May, as schools contended with a heat wave and urged the state to let local officials decide.

While New Jersey has one of the highest rates of vaccination in the country, Ocean County has remained below Murphy's goal of 70 percent of the adult population getting vaccinated.

According to the CDC data as of Thursday, 62.7 percent of Ocean County residents 18 and older have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccines, and 55 percent are fully vaccinated. For those age 65 and older, for whom the risks associated with the virus are higher, 81.7 percent have received at least one dose and 73.2 percent are fully vaccinated.

The Ocean County Health Department continues to urge residents to get vaccinated and offers clinics at varying sites around the county. Vaccination appointments can be made through the health department's website.

With reporting by Alexis Tarrazi and Anthony Bellano

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