'Expect' NJ To Follow New CDC COVID Mask Guidance: Gov. Murphy

NEW JERSEY — Gov. Phil Murphy says he expects New Jersey to adopt the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's new outdoor mask guidance about wearing masks outside.

Murphy was referring to the CDC saying on Tuesday that fully vaccinated people — defined as those who are two weeks beyond getting the second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine —can gather together in small groups outside, or with people from multiple households (see the full guidance below).

"I would expect if there is then the next layer of full vaccination, that that's another step we will be able to take," Murphy told MSNBC late Tuesday. But we will certainly, as we always do, take the CDC guidance seriously and work with that guidance and continue to open our state up."

Murphy is expected to address the issue during his 1 p.m. news conference on Wednesday. Read more: WATCH LIVE: Gov. Murphy Issues NJ Coronavirus, Reopenings Update

Murphy said the state's guidance for masking outdoors "has been from the get-go in this pandemic: You need to wear a mask if you can't socially distance. If you can, you don't need to."

The development comes as New Jersey continues to reopen amid the coronavirus pandemic. On Monday, Murphy further eased restrictions on some indoor gatherings, but also said he wasn't ready to expand restaurant capacity either, though he said he hoped to do so "sooner than later." Read more here: NJ Eases COVID-19 Rules For Proms, Graduations, Other Activities

"You know we're not out of the woods yet," Murphy told the news station. "We've turned the corner, but we can incrementally, step-by-step methodically open the place up."

The state has reopened as the vaccine becomes more available in the Garden State. Many vaccination sites are now accepting walk-in appointments, whereas they required appointments in the past.

As of Tuesday, 6,752,773 total doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered, and 2,866,848 New Jerseyans are now fully vaccinated.

Fully vaccinated individuals with immunocompromised conditions should consult with their health care provider first.

According to the new CDC guidance, fully vaccinated people can engage in more activities than unvaccinated people, which include:

• Fully vaccinated workers no longer need to be restricted from work following an exposure as long as they are asymptomatic
• Fully vaccinated residents of non-health care congregate settings no longer need to quarantine following a known exposure
• Fully vaccinated people can visit with other fully vaccinated people indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing
• They can visit with unvaccinated people (including children) from a single household who are at low risk for severe COVID-19 disease indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing
• They can participate in outdoor activities and recreation without a mask, except in certain crowded settings and venues
• They can resume domestic travel and refrain from testing before or after travel or self-quarantine after travel
• They can refrain from testing before leaving the United States for international travel (unless required by the destination) and refrain from self-quarantine after arriving back in the United States.
• They can refrain from testing following a known exposure, if asymptomatic, with some exceptions for specific settings
• They can refrain from quarantine following a known exposure if asymptomatic
• They can refrain from routine screening testing if asymptomatic and feasible (in non-health care settings)

To see the full CDC guidance, click here.