New Report Compares COVID's Impact On Freehold Township

FREEHOLD, NJ - How did Freehold Township fare during the coronavirus pandemic?

Not very well, according to a new report released this week by the Senator Walter Rand Institute for Public Affairs at Rutgers University–Camden.

In fact, Freehold Township was among the top 30 percent of municipalities in the state to see an increase in coronavirus cases during the second wave of the pandemic, according to the study.

The second wave of the pandemic took place from June 30 - when summer reopenings began to expand - through Dec. 13, 2020.

During that time, Freehold Township’s infection rate was 4,154.80 per 100,000 people. It ranked No. 166 among the 561 municipalities included in the report. The increase was 176.85 percent, the 445th highest increase in the state.

In Monmouth County, the municipality with the highest infection rate during that period was Deal, which reported 29,239.77 cases per 100,000 people. Allenhurst, West Long Branch and Red Bank followed suit with around 7,000 cases per 100,000 residents.

Upper Pittsgrove Township in Salem County saw the highest increase at 6,750 percent, while Rockleigh Borough in Bergen County had the highest infection rate at 31,720.43.

The new report also offers a visualization of variations in COVID-19 rates across New Jersey municipalities and illustrates the reality that nearby municipalities can have COVID infection rates that are very different from each other.

"This data offers insight for those planning equitable aid allocations across the state and within counties," said Sarah Allred, a professor of psychology and faculty director of the Rand Institute, both at Rutgers University–Camden.

With reporting by Tom Davis, Patch Staff.