The County of Cape May Department of Health is reporting 14 new positive cases among County residents, Additionally, there is 1 new out of county positive case that is included in the Non-resident Active Cases listed below.

Total positive cases of COVID-19 infection in Cape May County is now 1512 including 94 deaths.  

Covid Safety Tips for Gatherings

During this difficult time, we understand everyone wants to be with family and friends. But being cautious when you interact with others is particularly important as New Jersey is seeing increasing signs of community spread. To ensure we don't inadvertently spread COVID-19 and needlessly put our loved ones at risk, the NJ Department of Health has offered safety tips for in-person gatherings:

• Indoor gatherings pose more risk than outdoor gatherings. Host outdoor activities rather than indoor activities as much as possible.
• Ask guests to wear face coverings when they cannot social distance.
• Make hand sanitizer available for guests.
• Gatherings that last longer pose more risk than shorter gatherings.
• Gatherings with more people pose more risk than gatherings with fewer people. Limit numbers of attendees as much as possible.
• Host activities with only people from your local area as much as possible as higher levels of COVID-19 cases and community spread in the gathering location, as well as where attendees are coming from, increase the risk of infection and spread.
• Remind invited guests to stay home if they have been exposed to the virus in the last 14 days, are showing COVID-19 symptoms, or recently travelled to an area or a state with high COVID-19 infection rates.
• Limit the number of people handling or serving food—for example, consider identifying one person to serve all food so that multiple people are not handling the serving utensils.
• Remind guests to wash their hands before serving or eating food.
• Use single-use hand towels or paper towels for drying hands so guests do not share a towel.
• Clean and disinfect commonly touched surfaces and any shared items between use when feasible.
• Consider keeping a list of guests who attended for potential future contract tracing needs. If you are called by a contact tracer, it's critical that you answer the call to protect us all. Your help is the key to stopping the spread of COVID-19 and saving lives.

Managing Your Risk

The NJ Department of Health breaks down the spread of COVID-19 into four factors:

1. TIME: How long will you be in a place? More time sitting in one place means higher risk.
2. SPACE: How much space will be around you? Less space means higher risk.
3. PEOPLE: How many people will be around you? More people means higher risk.
4. PLACE: What type of place are you going to? Indoor spaces mean higher risk.

Keeping these factors in mind can help you assess your risk while participating in activities. 

Stay up to date on the current situation as it evolves. Some reliable sources are New Jersey Poison Information and Education System Hotline at 211 or 1-800-962-1253, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at www.cdc.gov, World Health Organization at www.who.int, New Jersey Department of Health at COVID19.nj.gov. For additional information visit Cape May County Department of Health at www.cmchealth.net and also like us on Facebook.