Gov. Phil Murphy and New Jersey health officials are warning of a "twindemic" of coronavirus and flu this fall and urging people to take measures to stop it.
With COVID-19 still spreading, Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli warned of a "twindemic" of COVID-19 and flu. She urged everyone to get a flu shot as soon as possible to ensure the impact of flu on people and the health system won't be as bad.
'What we don't want to see is a really bad flu season with a resurgence of COVID," Persichilli said while noting the state is doing all it can to prevent that from happening.
Getting a flu shot before the end of October will help lessen the impact of the double viral threat, Persichilli said.
The southern hemisphere reported less flu during their recent season, in part due to safeguards put in place to slow the spread of coronavirus, which has similar symptoms, she said.
New Jersey has reopened – at least in a limited fashion – many parts of its economy as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have remained steady and lower since surging in the spring.
The virus, however, continues to spread with the rate of transmission above 1 on many recent days. As of Monday, the rate that someone with the virus is transmitting it to others was at 1.06, Murphy, a Democrat, said.
As of Monday, just under 197,000 positive coronavirus cases were reported in New Jersey. At least 14,245 deaths are confirmed to be attributed to complications from the virus. Another nearly 1,800 deaths are suspected to be due to COVID-19.
"I want to thank all of you working every day to keep your communities safe and to help us beat this virus," Murphy said. "Keep at it."
