COURT HOUSE – Cape May County appears to have gotten past the latest COVID peak for new cases from the Omicron variant, but sadly the County is reporting eight new deaths this week.
Hospitalizations and then deaths are lagging indicators of COVID spikes. New cases and hospitalizations have dropped over the past week, which typically leads to a lower death rate for the coming weeks.
The hospitalization for COVID positive patients at Cape Regional Medical Center on Jan. 21 is 39, compared to a recent high on 54 on Jan. 10.
The Cape May County Department of Health is announcing the passing of a 57-year-old Female from Lower Township, a 76-year-old Male from Ocean City, a 82-year-old Male from Middle Township, a 83-year-old Female from Middle Township, a 85-year-old Male from Avalon, a 86-year-old Male from Middle Township, a 86-year-old Male from Lower Township and a 88-year-old Female from Middle Township.
“In this sorrowful time, may the love of family and friends comfort you,” said Cape May County Commissioner Jeff Pierson. “We pray the worst of this peak is behind us based on the recent news of cases coming down. But this news reminds us of the importance of getting vaccinated and masking up when indoors, especially when we are around people who are the most vulnerable.”
The Rate of Transmission dropped below the key number of 1.0 this week, coming in at .82, according to the website covidactnow.org. This means that every person who is infected by COVID-19 is now infecting less than one other person, so the spread of the coronavirus can be said to be decreasing. The website also places Cape May County as having the second lowest daily new cases per 100K people.
The Cape May County Department of Health is offering multiple COVID vaccine clinics every week to provide options for County residents. These clinics will provide initial doses and booster shots of the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Individuals that have received the Moderna vaccine must wait six months before receiving the booster shot.
People who have taken the Johnson & Johnson vaccine need to wait two months before getting the booster. Anyone who is 18 years of age or older is now eligible for the COVID-19 booster shot throughout all of New Jersey. These are walk-in clinics. Masks, identification, and COVID-19 Vaccine Cards (if applicable) are required for all clinic locations. This upcoming week, vaccines will be available:
– Tuesday Jan. 25th 11 A.M. to 1 P.M. at the Millman Senior Center, 209 Bayshore Rd., in Villas
– Wednesday Jan. 26th 2 P.M. to 5 P.M. at the Avalon Community Center, 3001 Avalon Ave. in Avalon
The Cape May County Department of Health administered a total of 24,347 doses so far. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 77,702 Cape May County residents have received at least one vaccine dose and 65,271 have been fully vaccinated. The CDC also reports that 71% of the County’s population is fully vaccinated.
For more information on obtaining the vaccine, quickly and free of charge, go to https://capemaycountynj.gov/226/Health-Department or call (609) 465-1187. Cape May County has recorded 19,489 COVID-19 cases during the pandemic, 17,650 of those are now off quarantine. More details on daily reported case numbers can be found at https://capemaycountynj.gov/1418/Covid-19-Dashboard.
