The second wave of COVID-19, which descended on Princeton in November, may have begun to taper off, as the daily number of new cases appears to have declined during the first few days of February.
The number of positive cases of COVID-19 peaked at 57 in April, and then declined steadily through the spring and summer. The numbers began to creep up in October, when 21 new cases were reported, according to the New Jersey Department of Health.
A sharp jump of 67 new positive cases in November was followed by an increase of 93 new cases in December. The numbers soared to 111 in January, the New Jersey Department of Health statistics showed.
Through Feb. 8, there have been 18 newly-diagnosed positive cases of COVID-19 in Princeton, according to the New Jersey Department of Health.
Based on the 453 positive cases of COVID-19 compiled by the New Jersey Department of Health, fewer than 2% of Princeton residents have tested positive for the virus. Princeton has a population of 31,104 people.
Approximately 7% of Mercer County’s nearly 368,000 residents have been infected by COVID-19, as of Feb. 8. Mercer County reported 24,473 positive cases through Feb. 8.
In addition to Princeton, Mercer County includes Trenton, Hightstown Borough, Hopewell Borough, Hopewell Township, Pennington Borough and Hopewell, West Windsor, East Windsor, Robbinsville, Lawrence, Ewing and Hamilton townships.
Although the release of two vaccines may help to bring down the number of persons infected by COVID-19, Princeton residents who expected to turn to the Princeton Health Department for their vaccinations will have to look elsewhere.
The Princeton Health Department, which was poised to vaccinate people who had signed up for the shots, has been told that it will not be able to do so because of the shortage of vaccines, Princeton officials said.
State officials told the Princeton Health Department and other municipally-run health departments that the clinics which they had planned will be put on hold as of Feb. 13. They will resume when more vaccine is available.
The Princeton Health Department had already vaccinated 819 healthcare workers, police officers, firefighters and emergency medical technicians, plus some residents in high-risk categories, before the clinics were halted, Princeton Health Officer Jeffrey Grosser said.
The Princeton Health Department originally had a waiting list of about 20,000 people, but the list has been reduced to about 4,000 people, Grosser said. It includes about 2,000 people in the 1A and 1B groups, Grosser said.
Group 1A includes healthcare workers and residents of long-term care facilities and congregate settings. Group 1B is made up of first responders, persons over 65 years old and persons between 16 and 64 years old who have underlying health conditions.
Those people registered on the Princeton Health Department wait list should expect that it may take weeks or more to vaccinate everyone on the waitlist, Princeton officials said. Selection from the wait list may prioritize the oldest residents and those unable to navigate larger venues. New additions to the wait list are not being accepted.
Eligible residents who have pre-registered with the Princeton Health Department will continue to to offered appointments and then be scheduled into available slots at one of the two Mercer County-facilitated vaccination sites at the CURE Arena in Trenton or Mercer County Community College, Princeton officials said.
Residents also are being encouraged to reach out to other vaccine sites.
