NJ Is Seeing 'Omicron Tsunami' As COVID Cases Rise, Governor Says

EAST ORANGE, NJ — How many cases of the omicron coronavirus variant have spread in New Jersey over the past month? The answer to that question isn’t clear yet, but a federally backed mega COVID-19 testing site in Essex County will help to get a handle on just how bad an “omicron tsunami” is impacting the Garden State, Gov. Phil Murphy says.

On Friday, Murphy and state health commissioner Judy Persichilli visited a newly launched, temporary COVID-19 testing facility in East Orange, which is being run with help from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Read More: COVID Testing Megasite In East Orange Will Serve All NJ Residents

The site is open at no cost to all New Jersey residents. It kicked off operations on Jan. 1 and will continue until Jan. 12. Located in the East Orange Senior Center at 90 Halsted Street, it has the capacity to give up to 1,000 swab tests per day, and will be open daily from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pre-registration at www.EOVACCINE.org is requested, although the center will take walk-ins.

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It's currently unclear how much of New Jersey's recent case rise is due to omicron. But according to Murphy, the speed at which COVID-19 is spreading in the state is “staggering.” He noted that the state reported 28,512 new cases on Friday – shattering the one-day record set on Thursday.

“That’s roughly quadruple from just two weeks ago, and four times as many cases than during of last winter’s surge,” Murphy said.

The governor said the latest totals are most likely an undercount, because they don’t include the results of home tests.

“The best way we can get a handle on this phase of the pandemic is through testing,” Murphy said. “When you get tested and know your COVID status, you can take the necessary steps and precautions to limit the further spread.”

The state's COVID-19 count stood at 1.4 million total positive PCR tests on Sunday, according to the department of health. There have been 26,207 confirmed deaths linked to the disease. There are 9.29 million people living in New Jersey, according to the latest U.S. Census.

• See related article: Mask Mandates Return To New Jersey As COVID Spreads

HOSPITALIZATIONS

COVID-19 hospitalizations have doubled in the past two weeks, with 3,864 people confined to hospital beds as of Thursday night. The numbers are at the same level as they were during the peak of last winter’s surge, Murphy said.

“The problem is, we don’t see any sign of letup,” he said, adding that a million New Jersey residents are unvaccinated, and two million residents who are eligible to receive a booster have not done so.

Persichilli said 70 percent of the people who are currently hospitalized for the coronavirus are unvaccinated.

She suggested that anyone who has attended a gathering over the holidays should get tested.

New Jersey health officials have launched a website where people can search for COVID-19 testing facilities across the state. See it here.

In addition, the New Jersey Department of Health and Vault Medical Services have partnered to offer a free, at-home COVID-19 saliva test kit that is available to every New Jerseyan who thinks they need a test – even if they don't have symptoms. Learn more here.

OMICRON, DELTA IN NEW JERSEY

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention initially estimated that 73 percent of new COVID-19 cases nationwide were linked to omicron. But earlier this week, the agency revised those numbers, saying that as of Dec. 25, about 59 percent of all U.S. infections were caused by the variant.

According to the CDC data tracker, the omicron variant made up just 0.19 percent of all New Jersey COVID-19 cases over the four weeks ending on Dec. 4. The delta variant made up 98.44 percent over the same period — by far the largest percentage.

However, some public health experts have cautioned that pre-holiday data about omicron's reach in New Jersey is severely outdated.

According to regional data from the CDC — which includes New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands — 54.4 percent of cases reported were the omicron variant and 45.2 percent were the delta variant for the week ending Dec. 18. The omicron variant made up 88.4 percent of new cases for the week ending Dec. 25, while the delta variant made up 11.5 percent of cases that week. Read More: CDC Slashes Omicron Estimates: See Latest New Jersey Cases

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