In a March 12 press release from Monmouth County, the county’s Department of Public Information and Tourism said that with four presumptive positive cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Monmouth County, county officials are assuring residents they are monitoring the situation and taking action to ensure the public health and safety of residents.
Two of the presumptive positive cases include a 66-year-old female from Hazlet and an 83-year-old female from Hazlet who are both being treated at Hackensack Meridian Health Bayshore Medical Center, Holmdel.
The Golden Age Adult Day Care Program in the Morganville section of Marlboro, where both women were clients, has voluntarily closed and is working with the New Jersey Department of Health and the Monmouth County Health Department, according to the press release.
The two other cases include a 27-year-old male from Little Silver who recently attended the Biogen conference in Boston and a 17-year-old female from Little Silver who is an immediate family member of the 27-year-old male.
“We continue to assure you the freeholder board is actively engaged and in constant contact with local mayors and the New Jersey legislative delegation as well as the Governor’s Office and the New Jersey Department of Health,” Freeholder Director Thomas A. Arnone said. “We are committed to ensuring that the county has the necessary resources to respond and mitigate this evolving situation.
“All Monmouth County health officials and municipal health officials are following guidelines set forth by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Governor’s State of Emergency Declaration and the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH) for response to COVID-19 cases,” Arnone said.
All Monmouth County and municipal health officials are following guidelines set forth by the CDC and the NJDOH for monitoring and response to COVID-19 cases, according to the press release.
The best defense against the coronavirus is to practice safe respiratory hygiene and take steps to prevent the spread of germs, including washing hands, covering coughs and sneezes, and staying home when sick. However, residents should be aware that as investigations into these four cases continue, additional cases may be identified, according to the press release.
“Again, we would like to reiterate it is important to have factual, up-to-date information about the coronavirus,” Freeholder Deputy Director Susan Kiley said. “If you have questions, go directly to the CDC, the New Jersey Department of Health or the Monmouth County Health Department.”
There have been social media reports of individuals going door to door claiming to be from the CDC. The CDC is not deploying teams of people to go door to door and conduct surveillance, so people should not let these individuals in their homes or speak with them, according to the press release from the county.
The CDC has a “Share the Facts, Stop Fear” page which may be accessed at cdc.gov/coronavirus
Timely and accurate information may also be found at www.nj.gov/health
Anyone with questions may call the NJDOH COVID-19 24-hour public hotline at 1-800-222-1222 or send an email to [email protected]