The day after a lab processing error skewed COVID-19 case numbers, the state on Wednesday reported 3,079 new COVID cases and 31 more confirmed COVID-19 deaths.
On Tuesday, the daily number of new confirmed positive tests was dramatically lower than in recent weeks due to a lab processing error, Nancy Kearney, spokeswoman for the Department of Health, previously said. The error was expected to be resolved and the higher number of PCR tests on Wednesday may make up for cases not counted earlier due to the error.
All of New Jersey’s 21 counties are listed as having “high” rates of coronavirus transmission, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC is recommending people in all 21 counties wear masks for indoor public settings regardless of vaccination rates.
There were 1,186 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 or suspected cases across New Jersey’s 71 hospitals Tuesday night — 92 more than Monday night. There were 91 patients discharged from hospitals Tuesday.
Of those hospitalized, 270 were in intensive care (13 more than a day earlier), with 128 on ventilators (one fewer).
New Jersey’s statewide transmission rate on Wednesday stayed the same, at 1.04. Any number over 1 indicates that each new case is leading to more than one additional case and shows the state’s outbreak is expanding.
The positivity rate for tests conducted on Friday, the most recent day available, was 5.43%.
New Jersey has now reported 27,007 total COVID-19 deaths in more than 17 months — 24,258 confirmed and 2,749 considered probable, according to the state dashboard. The probable deaths, which are revised weekly, increased by 18 on Tuesday. New Jersey has the most coronavirus deaths per capita in the U.S.
At least 8,482 of the state’s COVID-19 deaths have been among residents and staff members at nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, according to state data.
New Jersey is now reporting more than 5.6 million people who live, work or study in the state have been fully vaccinated. More than 6.2 million people have received at least one dose as the state prepares to administer third doses and booster shots to those fully vaccinated in the coming months, pending approval from the federal government.
CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Newsletter| Homepage
There are active outbreaks at 153 long-term care facilities, resulting in 567 active cases among residents and 470 among staffers. Those numbers have continued to rise in recent weeks.
In all, the state of 9.2 million residents has reported 965,265 total confirmed cases out of the more than 15 million PCR tests conducted since it announced its first case March 4, 2020. The state has also reported 143,026 positive antigen tests, which are considered probable cases.
As of Tuesday, there have been more than 222 million positive COVID-19 cases reported across the globe, according to Johns Hopkins University, with more than 4.59 million people having died due to the virus. The U.S. has reported the most cases (more than 40 million) and deaths (more than 651,000) than any other nation.
More than 5.55 billion vaccine doses have been administered globally.
Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.
Rodrigo Torrejon may be reached at rtorrejon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rodrigotorrejon.