N.J. coronavirus deaths rise to 11,770 with 161,545 total cases. Another 708 new positive test confirmed. – NJ.com

New Jersey’s death toll from the coronavirus increased to 11,770 on Tuesday with at least 161,545 total cases since the state’s outbreak started March 4, but the downward trend across all key measurements continues, state health officials said.

Gov. Phil Murphy reported 51 new deaths attributed to COVID-19 and 708 new positive tests among the 9 million residents in New Jersey, home to the second-largest outbreak in the country. New Jersey hit a one-day high in deaths — 460 — on April 30 and a one-day high in new cases — 4,391 — on April 16.

The state’s peak in hospitalizations happened on April 14, with more than 8,000 coronavirus patients across New Jersey’s 71 hospitals. There were 2,372 patients reported as of 10 p.m. Monday, though data was missing for one hospital. New Jersey has seen 817,677 coronavirus tests administered since the start of the outbreak.

“We continue to trend overwhelmingly in the right direction,” Murphy said. “We feel confident we can enter Stage 2 together.”

On Monday, Murphy said the state will enter “Stage 2” of its multi-phase reopening plan on June 15, beginning with allowing outdoor dining and permitting nonessential retail stores to welcome customers inside at reduced capacity. Hair salons and barbershops will follow June 22.

Murphy said this is safe not only because the number of new cases and deaths are dropping, but because the state has ramped up testing and is expanding contact tracers that will allow officials to more easily handle any coronavirus spikes.

The county-by-county list of cases and deaths include:

  • Hudson County: 18,455 with 1,188 deaths
  • Bergen County: 18,333 with 1,584 deaths
  • Essex County: 17,752 with 1,672 deaths
  • Passaic County: 16,234 with 931 deaths
  • Middlesex County: 16,021 with 997 deaths
  • Union County: 15,868 with 1,078 deaths
  • Ocean County: 8,817 with 743 deaths
  • Monmouth County: 8,289 with 608 deaths
  • Mercer County: 7,004 with 477 deaths
  • Camden County: 6,603 with 339 deaths
  • Morris County: 6,512 with 617 deaths
  • Burlington County: 4,680 with 297 deaths
  • Somerset County: 4,605 with 419 deaths
  • Cumberland County: 2,345 with 78 deaths
  • Gloucester County: 2,262 with 148 deaths
  • Atlantic County: 2,251 with 162 deaths
  • Warren County: 1,173 with 132 deaths
  • Sussex County: 1,123 with 148 deaths
  • Hunterdon County: 999 with 60 deaths
  • Salem County: 645 with 42 deaths
  • Cape May County: 628 with 50 deaths

Another 946 cases are under investigation to determine where the person resides.

The total number of coronavirus cases in New Jersey is cumulative and does not reflect the likely thousands of residents who have recovered. There may also be infected residents who have yet to be tested.

Edward Lifshitz, medical director of the state Department of Health’s communicable disease service, said Monday he can’t give “an exact number” of how many active COVID-19 cases there currently are in the state because that’s difficult to tabulate.

“It is much lower than it has been, but it certainly isn’t zero,” Lifshitz said.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Newsletter | Homepage

Murphy has already allowed parks, beaches, boardwalks, and lakes in New Jersey to reopen. He increased the limit on outdoor gatherings to 25. Indoor gatherings remain capped at 10.

The governor announced last week that child daycare centers in New Jersey can reopen June 15, outdoor, non-contact organized sports can resume June 22, and youth day camps can operate beginning July 6, all with restrictions. The governor also said live horse racing can return, without fans, as early as this weekend. And he said the state is hoping to allow larger indoor gatherings, including those at churches and other houses of worship, by the weekend of June 12.

More than 1.1 million New Jersey residents have filed for unemployment since aggressive social distancing started in mid-March, causing the state’s unemployment rate to surge to 15.3%, though the number of new claims has fallen in recent weeks. Many say they’ve been waiting for weeks to get paid and have struggled with the state’s busy phone and online systems.

Murphy’s administration has said it plans to cut $1.3 billion in state spending thanks to plummeting tax revenue. The governor has warned of up to 200,000 public-worker layoffs if the federal government doesn’t provide more direct aid to states.

As of Tuesday morning, more than 6.3 million people have tested positive for COVID-19 across the globe, according to a running tally by Johns Hopkins University. Of those, more than 367,000 have died and more than 2.7 million have recovered.

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Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com.