NJ Now Reporting 'Probable' Coronavirus Death Toll

NEW JERSEY – New Jersey is now reporting probable deaths as part of its regular updates amid the coronavirus crisis. The report became public as Gov. Phil Murphy announced 406 additional coronavirus cases and 26 more deaths during his Thursday news conference (you can watch it here, below).

New Jersey is now reporting 1,854 "probable" deaths since the outbreak began in March. Added together with confirmed deaths, it means as many as 14,872 people have died in New Jersey because of the coronavirus.

Just under a third of the probable deaths are associated with long-term care facilities, said Edward Lifshitz, medical director for the state Department of Health.

Murphy said his administration has been examining death certificates to identify residents, with "great reliability," whose passing probably happened because of the coronavirus.

For many of these victims, tests were never performed even though they had the underlying symptoms of the illness, Murphy said.

Lifshitz said the determinations were made after the Department of Health discovered:

• The victims died after a "less specific test was done." The DOH thinks the cause of their demise was probably related to the coronavirus even though "we can't say for sure," said Lifshitz.
• The victims died as part of known outbreaks, most commonly in long-term care facilities, and had symptoms that were suggestive of the coronavirus. But they never got tested. This was particularly common early on when "testing was difficult and it was impossible to test everybody," said Lifshitz.
• The victims had death certificates that included various causes of death that may match the symptoms of the coronavirus.

Lifshitz said there isn't any evidence that anyone died before the first known coronavirus case in New Jersey, which was reported on March 4.

Murphy said he doesn't expect the number to rise significantly because of the decreasing fatality numbers as well as increased testing and contact tracing.

His administration will report on probable deaths every week, and the numbers will be found here.

Murphy said the numbers "represent the toll this pandemic has had on our New Jersey family."

"We report this out of nothing other than a solemn sense of duty," he said. "For many families, we hope these determinations will provide a sense of closure."

He also said he hopes the probable number will help drive the state to continue to make sure that every life is saved.

Murphy also said he and Department of Education Commissioner Lamont Repollet will provide rules and guidance for reopening all grades, K-12, in schools during the governor's 1 p.m. briefing on Friday. Patch will cover it live.

Murphy said the guidance has been in the works for weeks and will take into account the "many differences" that exist between districts, whether they're geographic, demographic or economic.

"There is no one size fits all guidance," Murphy said.

Boards of education will be given flexibility that "recognizes and respects" the differences between districts, he said.

The update comes as the number of cases has risen to 170,196, and 13,018 people have died. Read more: NJ Coronavirus, Reopen Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

Murphy and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo have issued new travel rules, saying travelers from high-infection rate states to New Jersey, New York and Connecticut "must quarantine" for 14 days. Here's what you have to do if you're coming to New Jersey. Read more: High-Infection State Travelers To NJ 'Must Quarantine:' Gov.

Murphy also said he will allow libraries, bowling alleys, indoor recreation and other businesses to reopen. Read more: Gov. Murphy To Reopen NJ Libraries, Museums, Indoor Recreation

Watch Murphy here:

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