Murphy Administration Opens Up Covid Vaccine to Slew of New Groups

Gov. Phil Murphy delivers a press conference, April 2020. (Pool Photo: Rich Hundley/ The Trentonian

Gov. Phil Murphy on Friday announced the coronavirus vaccine would now be available to a slew of new groups, from a new range of ages and underlying medical conditions, to occupations in certain fields of work.

• Individuals ages 55-64;
• Individuals ages 16 and up with intellectual and developmental disabilities;
• Educators, including support staff, in higher education settings;
• Communications infrastructure support, including engineers, and technicians, and members of the press;
• Real estate, building, and home service workers, including construction workers, code officials, plumbers, electricians, HVAC technicians, property management, and maintenance workers;
• Retail financial institution workers, including bank tellers, lending services, public accounting, and check-cashing workers;
• Sanitation workers providing disinfection and janitorial services, city sanitation workers; residential, commercial, and industrial solid and hazardous waste removal workers;
• Laundry service workers, including those working in laundromats, laundry services, and dry cleaners;
• Utility workers including, electrical generation and supply system, natural gas delivery, nuclear power plant, water supply, telephone, cable/fiber/optical/broadband/cellular service workers; and,
• Librarians and support staff at municipal, county, and state libraries.

A statement from the administration included endorsements for the expanded eligibility from numerous labor unions, including the American Federation of Teachers New Jersey.

“We are equally pleased and relieved that Gov. Murphy and his administration have recognized the need to make professors and other college-university employees eligible for COVID-19 vaccines,” said Donna M. Chiera, president of the union. “Many of our members worked on campuses throughout this pandemic with limited PPE and no access to testing through their employers.”

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“Our Administration has worked closely with communities to build an extensive vaccination infrastructure and has opened over 700 vaccination sites across the state,” Murphy said in the statement. “We are already averaging approximately half a million shots per week, and with an expected increase in our federal allocation, we are confident we can expand our vaccination program to more of our essential workers and vulnerable populations. Together with our community partners and a steady supply of vaccine from the federal government, we will meet – and exceed – our goal of vaccinating 4.7 million New Jersey adults.”

The state urged those looking for more information about eligibility, statewide vaccination site locations, and the ability to preregister for a vaccination, to visit https://covid19.nj.gov/vaccine