Daily hospitalizations reaching levels not seen since Spring 2020 coupled with staff shortages is pushing New Jersey to reach out for help from the federal government again to face the latest COVID-19 surge. “Hospitals and long-term care facilities throughout the state are experiencing large staff shortages due to COVID,” said New Jersey Department of Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli. “We anticipate that 30%, at a minimum, of (healthcare) employees may be out sick at any given time.” Working to help hospitals with their staffing issues comes as the state’s dashboard had a count of 5,155 patients hospitalized in the 71 hospitals in the Garden State that filed reports Jan. 4—its highest mark since May 5, 2020. North-JerseyNews.com
COVID patients who are hospitalized in this wave of the pandemic are spending less time in the hospital—five to eight days, compared with 10 to 15 in previous surges. “The only silver lining in this is that the patients are not as sick,” said Dr. Robert Brenner, president for clinical integration and physician enterprise at Valley Health System, where in the last six weeks the number of COVID patients spiked from three to 122. “They’re coming in quicker, getting sick quicker, getting better quicker and going home.” The Record
Assembly Democrats and Republicans are nearing a compromise on the Statehouse vaccine-or-test mandate, potentially heading off another protest by a small group of conservatives who used delay tactics to stretch the last voting session to 11 hours. “It looks like something is being worked out with the majority and the Speaker,” said Assemblyman John DiMaio (R-23), the incoming minority leader. DiMaio declined to offer details, but was confident the compromise will be reached before Jan. 10‘s voting session. PoliticoNJ
A number of Assembly Republicans have stated they will not support Gov. Phil Murphy’s bid to seek a 90-day extension of his COVID-related emergency powers at next week’s legislative voting session. “Rather than looking to extend the governor’s emergency powers, we should be revoking the constraints that have been in place since March 2020 which, if these policies worked, we would have been over this a year and a half ago,” said Assemblyman Gerard Scharfenberger (R-13). New Jersey Globe
NJ Transit is maintaining greater than 90% service levels even as about 700 of it’s 12,000-person workforce are unable to work after testing positive for COVID-19. NJ Transit is maintaining 97% of full weekday scheduled rail service and 94% of full weekday scheduled bus service despite the spike in positive cases. Before the omicron variant surge, the agency’s peak number of positive cases among workers was 299 on April 27, 2020. New Jersey Herald
Rutgers University students must have a booster shot for the COVID-19 vaccine by Jan. 31, the school announced Jan. 4. Remote learning, which the school previously announced, will remain in place through at least Jan. 30. Additionally, the university is requiring all employees, who are currently encouraged to work remotely “when possible” until Jan. 31, will be required to have a booster shot. A deadline for the requirement is expected later this week. News12 New Jersey
A group representing special education students asked a federal judge for an emergency order to prevent any New Jersey schools from switching to remote learning. The Brain Injury Rights Group filed a motion Jan. 3 in U.S. District Court in Newark seeking a temporary restraining order to ensure the 237,000 students ages 3 to 21 who receive special education services in New Jersey will remain in person in schools this week and weeks to come. The motion came as some districts shifted to remote classes after Winter break, when a spike in COVID-19 cases left many schools short-staffed. New Jersey Monitor
New Jersey’s Supreme Court requested more information from New Jersey Congressional Redistricting Commission chairman John Wallace Jr. as to why he chose the Democrat’s map proposal over Republicans’ competing map. Chief Justice Stuart Rabner was responding to a Dec. 30, 2021, lawsuit filed by Republican members of the redistricting commission. Wallace, a former New Jersey Supreme Court associate justice, was the tie-breaking vote on the 13-member panel in favor of certifying the Democrats’ redistricting proposal on Dec. 22, 2021. At issue is Wallace’s statement that he decided to vote for the Democratic map “simply because in the last redistricting map it was drawn by Republicans. Thus, I conclude that fairness dictates that the Democrats have the opportunity to have their map used for this next redistricting cycle.” North-JerseyNews.com
Gov. Phil Murphy’s latest nominee to the New Jersey Supreme Court is unlikely to be confirmed before the current legislative session ends in about a week. Murphy nominated Rachel Wainer Apter, a civil rights attorney and fellow Democrat, last March to succeed Justice Jaynee LaVecchia, an independent who left the bench Dec. 31, 2021. But it’s up to the state Senate to confirm her, and that hasn’t happened with just eight days to go before the current lame-duck voting session ends. If the Senate doesn’t take up the nomination before then, Murphy will either have to re-nominate Wainer Apter or nominate someone else in the new session. NJ.com
Former President Donald J. Trump canceled a news conference that he had scheduled for the one-year anniversary of the breaching of the U.S. Capitol. Trump faulted both the media and the ongoing House investigation into the assault on the Capitol for his cancellation to be delivered from his Mar-a-Lago home, but said he would “discuss many of those important topics” at a rally he is planning for Jan. 15 in Arizona. Republicans, including Trump, have tried to divert attention from the fact that it was the former president’s supporters who turned violent as they sought to stall the certification of the 2020 election, and to falsely blame House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for the violence. The New York Times
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) expressed reservations on a Democratic push to change the filibuster and advance their elections bills. In comments to reporters Jan. 4, Manchin said he was engaged in talks about possible changes to the filibuster rule, which currently requires the votes of 60 senators to advance most bills. But, he said, any changes should have the buy-in of Republicans as well, and he was leery of Democrats going it alone. Manchin’s statements came after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said that Democrats would put elections legislation on the floor and then would attempt to enact rules changes if Republicans again filibustered the legislation. The Wall Street Journal
A pair of recently enacted bills aim to help New Jersey better address the mental health needs of K-12 students across the state. Under A-4433/S-2715, the New Jersey Department of Education (DOE), in conjunction with the Department of Children and Families (DCF), will establish a competitive grant program to help districts select and train mental health providers as a way to address the shortage of school-based mental health professionals. For A-4435/S-2717, the DCF will be required to give priority to certain districts with student mental health counseling centers in awarding grants under the School Based Youth Services Program. “Now more than ever, we must ensure that our schools have enough skilled professionals capable of identifying students who are in crisis and in need of mental health services,” said State Sen. Kristin Corrado (R-40). North-JerseyNews.com
Democratic leaders in the State Senate say they are optimistic they will reach a compromise on the Reproductive Freedom Act that would protect and expand abortion rights in New Jersey should the conservative-leaning U.S. Supreme Court overturn the landmark Roe V. Wade decision. State Senate President Steve Sweeney, (D-3) said he was “hopeful” a deal could be reached on before the two-year legislative session ends Jan. 11, while Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg (D-37) remarked “I have been the lone optimist is the room, but now I feel a few more have joined me.” NJ.com
A proposed law to eliminate a New Jersey rule that blocks wineries producing more than 250,000 gallons annually from shipping to New Jersey residents, was advanced Jan. 3 by the Assembly Oversight, Reform and Federal Relations Committee. While the rest of the U.S. permits direct-to-consumer shipping from wineries of all sizes, there are fears in New Jersey that such a move could deliver a blow to the brick-and-mortar businesses that rely on in-person sales of bottles of wine. “We just can’t afford that in New Jersey, particularly at this time in our history,” Assemblyman Brian Rumpf (R-9) said during a legislative hearing. NJ1015.com
Darnell Richardson was sworn in as Morristown’s chief of police, the first Black chief in the department’s history. Richardson, who was acting chief prior to the promotion, has been with the department for more than 30 years. “My only goal was to become a police officer in my hometown as a child. To hold the title of being the first African-American is something I never foresaw,” Richardson said. The Daily Record
Committeewoman Maggee Miggins was elected Mayor of Millburn at a reorganization meeting of the Township Committee on Jan. 4. “There are challenges to be met, issues to be addressed and proactive solutions needed for both present and future problems,” said Miggins. “I am confident that as Mayor I can make a meaningful contribution to our Township.” Miggins is in her second year on the five-member Township Committee. InsiderNJ
And finally…Tonight’s Powerball jackpot has soared to $610 million, the 11th largest in lottery history. NJ.com
