Page 44 - Scott Fallon News Today

View Comments Changes to mask-wearing mandates and guidelines have come at a dizzying pace over the past two months, leading to confusion among many in the public. Plummeting COVID metrics in late spring, especially in New Jersey, followed by a rise in hospitalizations and cases this summer — especially in states with low vaccine rates — have prompted a slew of guidance, including a major change this week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  On Wednesday, Gov. Phil Mur...

NorthJersey.com After staying in a holding pattern for almost a month, COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in New Jersey have begun to increase over the past week as the delta variant continues to spread and the states daily vaccination rate drops.  It is the first uptick since New Jersey began its "return to normalcy" in May, when capacity restrictions were lifted and mask mandates ended. At the time, hospitalizations, cases and deaths had been plummeting for more than a month. "The trends w...

View Comments Two weeks after Gov. Phil Murphy lifted the school mask mandate for all New Jersey students come September, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may have thrown a wrench in those plans.  The nations top health agency issued much-anticipated guidelines Friday calling for all unvaccinated teachers, staff and students to wear masks indoors and practice social distancing as schools return to full-time, in-person instruction. Since a COVID vaccine for ages 5 to 11 isnt exp...

View Comments Gov. Phil Murphys administration reported no confirmed COVID-19 deaths on Tuesday for the first time since the pandemics earliest days. But while the news is welcome, its also a bit of a technicality.  New Jersey hospitals reported six COVID deaths in the last 24 hours, but none has yet to be confirmed by state epidemiologists. Due to the Independence Day holiday weekend, there may be deaths that have not yet been reported to the state Department of Health, said Donna Leusner, a...

View Comments Fifteen months after they were shuttered at the height of the pandemic, adult day care centers will be allowed to reopen due to a sharp decline in COVID-19 deaths, hospitalizations and cases, state officials said Monday.  The centers, which provide activities for those suffering from dementia, were closed to protect the elderly on March 20, 2020 when there were only 890 cases and 11 confirmed COVID deaths in the state. Since then, New Jersey has tallied more than 890,000 cases...

Even if NJ reaches goal of 70% adults vaccinated, experts now say herd immunity is unlikely. "COVID will be around a lot longer," a professor said.

View Comments More vaccine doses will be sent to New Jersey pediatricians and family practices as the state ramps up its vaccination campaign among adolescents and prepares for inoculating young children, possibly in the fall, state officials said Wednesday. The move comes a day after Pfizer said it expects to request federal authorization in September or October to provide the vaccine to children ages 5 to 11, and a little later in the fall for younger children. Moderna and Johnson & Johnson ...

View Comments Infections, hospitalizations and death from COVID-19 among fully vaccinated New Jerseyans were all extremely rare over the first four months of the vaccination campaign, according to a study released Wednesday.  Only 0.06% of fully vaccinated New Jerseyans became infected with COVID-19, the Health Department study shows.  That represents 1,319 "breakthrough cases" among more than 2.2 million fully vaccinated people between Dec. 15 and April 23.  "The vaccines we have are no...

Restrictions on indoor gatherings and some workplace rules are being lifted by Gov. Phil Murphy today. Heres what you need to know.

NJ Senate unanimously approved $10 million lake funding bill New Jersey Herald A bill to help New Jersey lakes impacted by harmful algae and other environmental issues in recent years is one step closer to being signed into law after the state Senate unanimously approved it Thursday. The Senate voted 36-0, with four members not voting, in favor of S-3618, which would make a "supplemental appropriation" of $10 million for recreation and conservation purposes on lakes in New Jerseys Highlands a...