New Jersey Department of Health ELC program - Applicant's Jurisdictional Overview and Main Challenges: New Jersey’s diversity is a strength. The state’s 9.2 million residents, distributed in 21 counties and 565 municipalities, boast remarkable diversity in terms of race/ethnicity, culture, and languages spoken. New Jersey is the most densely populated state in the nation with 1,263 residents per square mile and is 11th among states with the most multi-generational housing. New Jersey ranks third in the nation with the highest percentage of individuals who are foreign-born. Nearly one-third of all New Jerseyans reported speaking a language other than English at home This diversity contributes to the complexity of, and need to, serve marginalized populations. New Jersey's proximity to the New York City and Philadelphia metropolitan areas continues to position it as a key location for emerging health challenges in the Northeast and across the United States. The presence of Newark Liberty International Airport, along with other major transportation hubs, places New Jersey at a strategic point for public health monitoring, especially for infectious diseases, as evidenced in early 2020 when New Jersey was an epicenter for the emerging COVID-19 pandemic. NJ’s mortality rate has seen fluctuations, particularly due to the COVID-19 pandemic.. Heading into the COVID-19 pandemic, the death count and rate among New Jersey residents had been steadily declining for decades. New Jersey’s age adjusted death rate dropped below that of the U.S. in the mid-to late-1990s and continued to remain below the U.S. rate. Influenza and pneumonia are the most common cause of death from infectious diseases. With the arrival of the pandemic, NJ saw our age adjusted death rate for these conditions rise from 10.9/100,000 in 2019 to 14.0/100,000 in 2020. In 2020, there were approximately 95,715 deaths, far exceeding the average 76,000 annual deaths of previous years. Given New Jersey's active international airport and the commuting patterns of its population, the state remains vigilant about imported diseases, including Zika and multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs). The state's public health strategies prioritize addressing these concerns, alongside the continued threat of vector-borne diseases, to protect the well-being of its diverse and densely populated communities, and NJ is also addressing the increasing threat of mosquito-borne diseases due to climate change. See Application Background & Overview for complete high-level overview of NJ's ELC CK24 application.
