COVID is showing signs of plateauing in Pa. as Christmas approaches, but the surge in N.J. continues

The spread of COVID-19 has slowed in Pennsylvania as Christmas approaches, with hospitalizations in the state declining since last week.

In Philadelphia, cases have plateaued over the last two weeks. As of Wednesday, seven more people were hospitalized with COVID than reported a week prior.

In New Jersey, cases and hospitalizations both continued to grow. Gov. Phil Murphy said the hospitalization numbers may be inflated, however, in an interview this week with FOX 5. He noted the counts include people in the hospital who have tested positive for the virus, but were not admitted because of COVID infections.

“In fairness, probably three-quarters or more [of coronavirus patients] are in the hospital for reasons unrelated to that,” Murphy said on FOX 5.

New cases are likely being undercounted due to more people using home tests, which are rarely reported to public health agencies — or not testing at all.

A “tridemic” of viral illnesses is currently causing widespread illness around the Philadelphia region and nationally. The combination of COVID, the flu, and RSV has prompted federal health officials to urge people to mask while in public indoor spaces.

Still, by any metric, the region and the nation is seeing the lowest levels of recorded sickness and death over a winter holiday season since the pandemic began. COVID hospitalization counts are much lower than they were at this time in 2020 or 2021.

Two years ago at this time, an average of 2,714 Americans were dying of COVID a day, according to the New York Times COVID tracker. A year ago, the virus was claiming 1,368 lives daily. The country is now averaging 413 deaths daily.

» READ MORE: Visit our COVID tracker to see more data

Here’s a look at this week’s COVID numbers:

Daily average cases: 2,087

Case rate rise/fall over 14 days: +5%

Daily average hospitalizations: 1,765

Hospitalizations rate rise/fall over 14 days: Flat

Total deaths: 48,798

Daily average cases: 212

Case rate rise/fall over 14 days: -1%

Daily average hospitalizations: 376

Hospitalizations rate rise/fall over 14 days: +3%

Total deaths: 5,416 (as of Dec. 19)

Daily average cases: 2,702

Case rate rise/fall over 14 days: +16%

Daily average hospitalizations: 1,528

Hospitalizations rate rise/fall over 14 days: +17%

Total deaths: 35,361

Data Sources: New York Times COVID data tracker; New Jersey and Pennsylvania Departments of Health. Numbers are updated as of Wednesday, Dec. 21.