Two people in New Jersey so far have tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, according to a report published Thursday on the NorthJersey.com website.
One of the patients is under quarantine at Englewood Health, with no connection to the first case that was identified on Wednesday, a 32-year-old male health care worker who lives in Manhattan but spent the night at his Fort Lee residence earlier this week.
The patient developed symptoms Sunday, went to an urgent care clinic Monday and then went to the Hackensack University Medical Center emergency room after that, where he was hospitalized under quarantine in stable condition. He had no contact with residents in Fort Lee, officials said, and traveled in his own private vehicle from Manhattan.
This case may be one of “community spread” inasmuch as the patient had not traveled to any of the countries where the virus is spreading, nor had he any connection to the COVID-19-positive patients in New York. In addition, he has no school-age children.
It is thus not yet clear how he might have contracted the disease.
New Jersey State Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said cases tested by the state’s public health laboratory are considered “presumptive positive” until confirmed by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.