Essex County Stuck In ‘High’ Coronavirus Status: See Local Totals

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Essex County is still stuck in "high" coronavirus transmission status, according to the latest update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The CDC recently released an online map that rates counties across the nation according to their levels of COVID-19 transmission. The CDC uses four categories of threat level: low, moderate, substantial and high.

After several weeks at the “substantial” threshold, CDC officials bumped Essex County up to the “high” level earlier this month. That hasn't changed for the latest reporting period, which covered Aug. 12 to Aug. 18.

Some health officials have pointed to the more contagious delta variant as a major factor behind the recent spread. In its weekly COVID-19 Variant Surveillance Report that ended July 24, the New Jersey Department of Health noted that a whopping 90.4 percent of all variant cases were the delta variety – up from 9.7 percent in December 2020.

• See related article: COVID Vaccines, Tests In Essex County (How To Get Yours)
• See related article: Essex County Rolls Out Booster Shots; 357 Given On First Day

Essex County officials have been releasing cumulative COVID-19 totals for each town and city, noting that their daily report may not match state or municipal totals (here's why).

See the previous month of case and death totals below.

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com

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