Community COVID Transmission 'High' In Passaic County: CDC

PASSAIC COUNTY, NJ — The county now has a "high" rate of community COVID-19 transmission, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report.

But the county isn't alone, as all but one county in the state are now deemed as places with "high" transmission.

This is a change for Passaic County, which along with Sussex, Warren and Morris Counties were still places with "substantial transmission" in the CDC's prior report.

Passaic County has recorded 531 new cases of the COVID-19 in the seven-day period from Aug. 12 through Aug. 18. New hospital admissions are up by 16 percent, according to the CDC.

The delta variant continues to be the primary COVID-19 strain in the state, accounting for 93.5 percent of the cases sequenced in the last four weeks, according New Jersey Department of Health data.

The news that Passaic County is now a region with "high" transmission comes as hospitals and local health departments begin third doses of the COVID-19 vaccine for the immunocompromised.

Recently, county offices have also moved to require masks inside public buildings, and Wayne Township has put forth a vaccine mandate for employees.

Though that mandate was challenged by the local police union, an area judge declined to block it, saying that it didn't infringe on any constitutional rights.

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