New Jersey surpasses 200,000 coronavirus cases

New Jersey has surpassed 200,000 cases of the coronavirus, becoming the eighth state in the country to reach the grim milestone.

The state reported nearly 400 cases Monday, pushing the statewide total to 200,154, Gov. Phil Murphy announced. The share of virus tests coming back positive is 1.81%, with lower positivity in the northern part of the state and higher positivity in the south.

Every county in New Jersey has had at least 1,000 cases of the virus except Cape May — which stands at 999 cases. About 30% of new cases are concentrated in Ocean and Monmouth counties, officials said.

Judy Persichilli, the state’s health commissioner, blamed large social gatherings for rising cases in Monmouth County. She singled out Lakewood for driving up the number of new cases in Ocean County, but said the state has not been able to identify exact causes.

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Additional contact tracers deployed in Ocean County have recently struggled to contact people due to the religious holidays, she said.

The state recorded its first positive coronavirus case, a 32-year-old Fort Lee man, on March 4. Statewide, there have been 14,278 confirmed deaths from COVID-19 and another 1,791 probable deaths. 

Svetlana Shkolnikova covers local news and Superior Court in Morris County for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from criminal trials to local lawsuits and insightful analysis, please subscribe or activate your digital account today. 

Email: shkolnikova@northjersey.com Twitter: @svetashko