New Jersey may never reach herd immunity from COVID. Here’s what that means. Updated 8:14 AM; Today 6:25 AM Masked crowds walk along boardwalk in Ocean City, N.J. in May 2020.Lori M. Nichols | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com Facebook Share Since the coronavirus first appeared in New Jersey last March, wreaking deadly havoc in every corner of the state, one phrase kept being uttered regularly, a seemingly magical yet nebulous two-word goal: Herd immunity. It’s a point when a community reaches protection from an infectious disease because a sufficient percentage of a population has become immune to infection through vaccination or previous illness. Only when we reach that point can we truly get back to our old way of life.