While the number of coronavirus hospitalizations continues to decrease across both North and Central Jersey, the curve of hospitalizations due to COVID-19 still is on an upward trajectory in South Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy said Wednesday.
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Murphy did note that scale of hospitalizations is much smaller in South Jersey than it is in the other two regions of the state.
"There's no question that (the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations) is migrating south," Murphy said. "We need to get the back of that curve cracked and heading in the right direction."
The rate at which coronavirus cases double continues to slow across all 21 counties, but all seven South Jersey counties –Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, and Salem – are seeing cases multiply faster than almost every other county in North or Central Jersey.
The number of COVID-19 infections still remains much lower in South Jersey than in the other two regions of the state. There have been 9,236 positive cases and 370 deaths due to COVID-19 in South Jersey as of Wednesday afternoon, and the seven counties that make up the region are among the bottom half in total number of cases across the state.
New Jersey reported an additional 2,481 confirmed coronavirus cases on Wednesday, bringing the state's total to 116,264. There have been 6,770 deaths due to COVID-19 statewide.
State officials recorded 426 new hospitalizations due to COVID-19 on Wednesday and there are currently a total 6,289 people hospitalized due to the virus. New Jersey hospitals discharged 474 coronavirus patient over the last 24 hours.
Of the 6,289 hospitalizations, 1,811 patients are in critical or intensive care and 1,327 individuals are on ventilators. The state is currently treating 61 patients at its three field medical stations set up in each region of the state.
New Jersey residents have to continue practicing social distancing to prevent people from having to go to the hospital in the first place, Murphy said.
"The data from our hospitals is critical in our gauging of our readiness to put our state on the road back," Murphy said. "These are real numbers. They are an important measure of public health and of our healthcare system's status and readiness."
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