North Jersey residents 12 and older can now obtain the updated COVID-19 bivalent booster dose. Approved by the CDC, this updated version of COVID-19 boosters offers stronger protections against severe illness and death from Omicron sub-variants.
Gov. Phil Murphy and New Jersey Department of Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli on Sept. 2 announced the state has received allocations of both Pfizer and Moderna bivalent boosters, which are being delivered to vaccine providers. Over 800 sites are expected to have bivalent booster doses in the coming days.
As bivalent vaccines, these boosters will target both the original COVID-19 strain as well as the BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants. Omicron is currently causing most U.S. COVID-19 cases and are predicted to circulate this Fall and Winter as well, according to the FDA.
Pfizer, Moderna Vaccines
“As we continue to adapt our response to COVID-19 to protect public health, these new boosters have been updated to target commonly-circulating variants in order to guard individuals against severe illness this fall,” said Murphy. “I continue to encourage everyone to get vaccinated and to stay up to date on their boosters, as vaccines are our greatest tool in the fight against COVID-19.”
The Pfizer bivalent booster is recommended for all individuals ages 12 and older, while the Moderna bivalent booster is recommended for those ages 18 and older. People can get the booster if it has been at least two months since they have completed their primary vaccination series or two months after they have received the most recent booster dose with any authorized or approved monovalent COVID-19 vaccine.
Fall Booster
Persichilli stressed that COVID-19 vaccines have proven to be safe and effective and continue to protect against serious illness and save lives.
“With children back in school and the upcoming Fall and Winter holidays, the new bivalent vaccine will give New Jerseyans additional protections against these highly transmissible subvariants,” said the commissioner. “As always, if you have yet to get any COVID-19 vaccine or booster, we strongly encourage you to get one today to help protect yourself, your family and community.”
Currently, nearly 81% of New Jerseyans have completed their primary series, and more than 54% have received a first booster. COVID-19 primary series vaccines continue to be recommended for everyone ages 6 months and older, and COVID-19 boosters are recommended for every eligible individual ages 5 years and older.
Officials said going forward, bivalent boosters will be the sole version of COVID-19 boosters available to anyone ages 12 years and older.
COVID-19 cases:
New daily PCR cases: 1,713; Probable Cases: 550
Total Cases: 2,681,396 (2,280,035 PCR cases, 401,361 probable cases)
New Confirmed Deaths: 10 (9 probable deaths, 34,577 total deaths)
Rate of Transmission: 0.92, up from 0.91 from the day before
Percent Positivity: 14.2% as of Aug. 28; by region, the rate was 15.2% in the North, 13.8% in the Central region and 14.3% in the South
By County:
Bergen County: 165 New Cases, 61 Probable Cases, 3,210 deaths, 336 probable deaths
Essex County: 250 New Cases, 56 Probable Cases, 3,361 deaths, 313 probable deaths
Hudson County: 113 New Cases, 26 Probable Cases, 2,550 total deaths, 221 probable deaths
Morris County: 68 New Cases, 35 Probable Cases, 1,301 deaths, 306 probable deaths
Passaic County: 106 New Cases, 23 Probable Cases, 2,178 deaths, 204 probable deaths
Sussex County: 28 New Cases, 14 Probable Cases, 410 deaths, 97 probable deaths
Warren County: 12 New Cases, 7 Probable Cases, 324 deaths, 28 probable deaths
Hospitals
Hospitalizations: 973 (369 North; 327 Central; and 277 South)
Patients in intensive care units: 108
Patients on ventilators: 32
Patients discharged: 185
The state dashboard showed all 71 hospitals in the state reporting
Long-term Care Facilities
Facilities currently reporting one case: 391 (3,128 overall)
Current number of residents: 6,745 (55,869 overall)
Current number of staffers: 6,620 (45,033 overall)
Number of Deaths: 9,551 overall (8,740 reported by facilities, 139 staff deaths)
Vaccine
Total number of COVID-19 vaccines administered in New Jersey: 14,723,897 (14,209,066 in-state, plus an additional 514,831 administered out-of-state)
Fully Vaccinated: 7,0230,564 (6,820,645 in state and another 209,719 out of state). By county, 740,402 in Bergen County, 613,382 in Essex, 545,779 in Hudson, 395,672 in Morris, 368,909 in Passaic, 94,650 in Sussex, and 62,518 in Warren.
Booster Shots: 4,265,532 (2,359,368 Pfizer, 1,832,350 Moderna and 73,814 Johnson & Johnson)
