TRENTON, NJ – The COVID-19 vaccine works. It protects 98% of Americans from serious illness if they happen to contract the virus. It also reduces the risk of death and hospitalization by 99.97%. But now, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has vaccination hesitancy and is once again requesting that all New Jerseyans go back to masking up, even those who are fully vaccinated.
“Following yesterday’s announcement by the Centers for Disease Control regarding masking, Governor Phil Murphy and New Jersey Department of Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli today strongly recommended that both vaccinated and unvaccinated residents wear masks in indoor settings when there is increased risk,” Murphy said.
Murphy said fully vaccinated people should get their face masks out of storage and use them in the following settings:
• Crowded indoor settings
• Indoor settings involving activities with close contact with others who may not be fully vaccinated
• Indoor settings where the vaccine status of other individuals in the setting is unknown
• Where an individual is immunocompromised or at increased risk for severe disease
We could be in for the long haul as the Governor says this action is needed because people in New Jersey have stopped getting vaccinated. The amount of new vaccinations in the state has been stagnant since early June when the rate of new vaccinations flatlined.
Many in the state now fear what’s next as Murphy slinks himself and his administration back into pandemic panic mode. There is already a push for face masks in school in September and Murphy said he has not ruled out bring back his pandemic shut down policies such as limiting capacities, mandatory face masks and worse.
Now, Phil Murphy and his fellow Democrats are suggesting mandatory vaccinations.
New Jersey also has it’s own vaccination passport app.
“Our metrics are trending in the wrong direction, and new data suggests the Delta variant is more transmissible even among vaccinated individuals, which is why we are making this strong recommendation,” Murphy said. “Fortunately, our numbers are a fraction of those in many other states, most of which have significantly lower vaccination rates. Should our numbers reach those levels, we reserve the right to take more drastic action, including a statewide mask mandate.
“We have crushed this virus repeatedly like no other state in the nation, and we are proud to boast among the country’s highest vaccination rates. But at this point, given where our metrics are now, we feel the best course of action is to strongly encourage every New Jerseyan, and every visitor to our state, to take personal responsibility and mask up indoors when prudent,” the governor said. “And we equally encourage every unvaccinated resident or visitor to get vaccinated. The vaccines are proven safe and highly effective, and are the surest way we can end this pandemic.”
