Health officials and politicians sounded optimistic this week that New Jersey is “turning the corner” on the pandemic, as Gov. Murphy put it. Cities and towns are reexamining mask mandates as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations decline. The lower rate of transmission prompted Morristown to rescind its mandate requiring masks at indoor venues while Newark’s will remain in place for the foreseeable future.
“It’s kind of like being on a roller coaster that you’ve never been on before — and you have no idea where the ups and downs are going to be, and when the ride is going to come to an end,” said epidemiologist Dr. Eddy Bresnitz. And New Jersey’s COVID-19 death rate is so high, the State Medical Examiner created two temporary morgues because of “a critical shortage of space within morgues across the state.”
