NJ To Follow New CDC Vaccine Guidance 'To Some Degree:' Murphy

NEW JERSEY - Gov. Phil Murphy says New Jersey will follow "to some degree" new guidance released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that addresses one of the fastest-growing groups the Garden State: the fully vaccinated.

The new guidance suggests fully vaccinated people can meet indoors without a mask and can forgo physical distancing (see guidance below).

Murphy appeared to act on the new guidance on Wednesday, announcing that the indoor capacity of bars, restaurants and other businesses will expand to 50 percent. Read more: NJ Bars, Restaurants, Others To Expand To 50 Percent Amid COVID

Appearing on "Market Close" on Yahoo Finance Tuesday evening, Murphy said that it was "pretty clear" the Garden State will be following the guidance "at least to some degree."

"We've been pretty much adherent to the CDC guidance from Day 1," Murphy said. "We're one of the states that has basically in sync with them and I suspect you'll see us in sync here."

Murphy said this week he would have more to say on the guidance during his 1 p.m. news conference on Wednesday after the state Department of Health had a chance to "digest it," but the changes appear to be significant. Read more: WATCH: Gov. Murphy Issues NJ Coronavirus, Vaccines Update

During the news conference, however, Murphy said he was not ending the state's public mask mandate.

Murphy said the mental health strain, particularly on seniors who haven't been able to see their grandchildren, has been "overwhelming."

"The extent to which we can do that responsibly, I promise you, we'll do it without taking on undue risk at the same time," Murphy said.

The CDC new guidelines say people are considered fully vaccinated for COVID-19 two weeks after they have received the second dose in a 2-dose series, such as Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna, or two weeks after they have received the single-dose vaccine Johnson & Johnson Janssen vaccine.

Read more: Where To Get The Coronavirus Vaccine In New Jersey

"The benefits of reducing social isolation and relaxing some measures such as quarantine requirements may outweigh the residual risk of fully vaccinated people becoming ill with COVID-19 or transmitting SARS-CoV-2 to others," the report said. "Additionally, taking steps towards relaxing certain measures for vaccinated persons may help improve COVID-19 vaccine acceptance."

The CDC guidance is as follows:

• You can gather indoors with fully vaccinated people without wearing a mask and you don't have to maintain physical distancing.
• You can gather indoors with unvaccinated people from one other household (for example, visiting with relatives who all live together) without masks, unless any of those people or anyone they live with has an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19.
• If you've been around someone who has COVID-19, you do not need to stay away from others or get tested unless you have symptoms.
  • However, if you live in a group setting (like a correctional or detention facility or group home) and are around someone who has COVID-19, you should still stay away from others for 14 days and get tested, even if you don't have symptoms.

Officials still ask fully vaccinated people to:

• Take precautions in public like wearing a well-fitted mask and physical distancing
• Wear masks, practice physical distancing, and adhere to other prevention measures when visiting with unvaccinated people who are at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease or who have an unvaccinated household member who is at increased risk for severe COVID-19 disease
• Wear masks, maintain physical distance, and practice other prevention measures when visiting with unvaccinated people from multiple households
• Avoid medium- and large-sized in-person gatherings
• Get tested if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms
• Follow guidance issued by individual employers
• Follow CDC and health department travel requirements and recommendations

All of these recommendations apply to non-healthcare settings.

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